Third UN Employee Loses Ebola Battle

A UN spokesperson has confirmed that a staff member in Sierra Leone has died from Ebola. The latter is the third employee from the world organization to succumb to the deadly virus

The man, who was a driver for the UN Women agency, passed away at the weekend in Sierra Leone and his spouse is currently receiving treatment, said spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

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"All measures to protect staff at the duty station in Sierra Leone are being taken as best as possible under the current circumstances," said Dujarric.

A Sudanese national who worked as a UN health worker in Liberia died in Germany last week while a Liberian national died of probable Ebola last month.

The world's worst Ebola outbreak has killed at least 4,500 people in West Africa where the United Nations is leading an effort to beat back the virus with a massive influx of aid.

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A UN trust fund set up to provide quick funding to confront the Ebola emergency got a boost when Australia deposited $8.7 million and more pledges have come in.

Chile, Estonia, Finland, India, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Norway and Romania have also offered contributions, bringing the total amount of pledges to $ 43.5 million. They will contribute to the fund.

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UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon last week caused a stir when he complained of having only $100,000 in cash on hand for the fund and urged nations to dig deep in their pockets.

The fund is separate from a $1 billion dollar appeal that the United Nations has launched to beef up the Ebola response, of which 433 million dollars have been donated.

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Source-AFP