Like other epidemics, Ebola creates panic, dangerous rumors and unverified facts. Journalists must be prepared, yet unfortunately they often lack the necessary resources and tools that match the responsibility to inform local communities.

To help fill the gap, we’re supporting the Global Editors Networks's #HackAgainstEbola on January 14 and 15. Other supporters include Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), Union for Francophone Press (UPF), and Code for Africa. Follow the two-day event through GEN's live blog and the hashtag #HackAgainstEbola.

Our goal is to help develop the best tools needed to explain the Ebola epidemic. In Dakar, a dozen teams, composed of one journalist, one designer, and one developer, who will work to build a prototype online product in 48 hours.

This is only the final of a three part series. Nigeria's Pan-Atlantic University, Ghana's PenPlusBytes and South Africa's 24.com hosted previous Ebola hack days.

The Editors' Lab has been running Google-supported hack events in newsrooms around the world for the past few years, bringing journalists and coders closer together to explore new ways of creating and presenting the news. World-renowned media organizations including The New York Times, The Guardian, El Pais and Le Parisien have hosted hack days on different themes.

The winning team in Dakar will compete against the other winning Editors Lab teams at the GEN Summit 2015 in Barcelona next June.

Posted by Simon Morrison, Public Policy and Government Affairs Manager, London