Ban urges UN system-wide coordination on Ebola

, Aug 14: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday called for United Nations system-wide support to the World Health Organisation's (

) efforts to fight Ebola.

"This morning the secretary-general chaired a UN system-wide coordination on Ebola," Xinhua quoted Ban's spokesperson Stephane Dujarric as saying.

"He (Ban) stressed the need for the entire UN system to support the WHO efforts in combating the outbreak," Dujarric said.

The largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded began in Guinea in December 2013 and spread to other countries in West Africa.

According to the latest WHO figures, 128 new cases of Ebola virus disease, as well as 56 deaths, were reported from Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone, bringing the total number of cases to 1,975.

On Tuesday, Ban appointed David Nabarro as Senior United Nations System Coordinator for Ebola, in support of the work done by WHO Director-General Margaret Chan and her team to counter the outbreak, which the agency has designated a "public health emergency of international concern".

IANS