World Health Organization criticized for slow Ebola response

The World Health Organization (WHO) has faced criticism for its slow reaction vis-à-vis the yet-worst Ebola epidemic.

The WHO said on Friday the death toll from this epidemic, first declared in Guinea in March, had risen to 1,145.

Medical charity MSF (Doctors Without Borders) has said Ebola spread had created a “wartime” situation in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.

MSF President Joanne Liu has said, “I think the wake-up call was too late.”

Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Koroma has said, “We need a more robust response to the nature of the disease and the way it is affecting us,” adding he had delivered this message to the WHO.

“If our people are dying, the response should be an extraordinary response because it is an extraordinary situation,” he has noted.

“Time is of the essence,” he added.

Ebola spreads through contact with bodily fluids such as blood, saliva, and sweat. It has killed around two-thirds of those it has infected over the last four decades, with two outbreaks registering fatality rates approaching 90 percent.

There is currently no known cure for Ebola. Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone are grappling with the disease, which has also spread to Nigeria.