WHO, West African countries to launch intensified Ebola outbreak response plan

Updated: 2014-08-01

Xinhua

GENEVA, July 31 (Xinhua) -- The Director-General of the World Health Organization(WHO) and presidents of West African countries impacted by the Ebola virus Disease outbreak will meet on Friday in Guinea to launch a new 100 million U.S. dollars response plan.

a man washes his hands with disinfectant to prevent Ebola infection before entering a hospital in the capital city of Freetown, Sierra Leone. Ebola, a hemorrhagic fever that can cause its victims to bleed from the ears and nose, had never before been seen in this part of West Africa where medical clinics are few and far between. The disease has turned up in at least two other countries - Liberia and Sierra Leone - and more than 530 deaths have been attributed to the outbreak that is now the largest on record.(photo by Youssouf Bah/IC)

"The scale of the Ebola outbreak, and the persistent threat it poses, requires WHO and Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to take the response to a new level, and this will require increased resources, in-country medical expertise, regional preparedness and coordination," WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said in a statement.

"The countries have identified what they need, and the WHO is reaching out to the international community to drive the response plan forward," she noted.

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WHO, West African countries to launch intensified Ebola outbreak response plan

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