The United Nations vowed on Saturday to play a "strong role" in helping Liberia and its neighbours fight the deadly outbreak of Ebola in west Africa, which it said could take months to bring it under control.| They're doomed... |
"Ebola in Liberia must be addressed to ensure a stable economy, future and society," said Karin Landgren, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon's special representative for the country.
"The magnitude of this outbreak requires a higher level of coordination than previous responses and the UN Mission in Liberia will play a strong role in this effort," she said in a statement on Saturday.
Her comments were echoed by Dr David Nabarro, the UN's new pointman on Ebola, who arrived in the region on Thursday to tour the Ebola-hit countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Nigeria. Nabarro, a British physician tasked with coordinating the global response to the worst-ever outbreak of the deadly virus, said the UN would "ensure that adequate resources are given to sectors that need it most".
A day earlier, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned it could take "several months" to bring the epidemic under control.
"This is not something to turn around overnight, it is not going to be easy; we expect several months of hard work," said the UN agency's Assistant Director-General, Dr Keiji Fukuda, who is accompanying Nabarro on his tour.
Their visit has coincided with a surge in new cases of Ebola in the region, as affected countries struggle to contain the spread of the killer virus. The WHO said on Friday that the death toll had risen to 1,427 out of more than 2,600 cases — with 77 succumbing to the disease between August 18 and 20.