AUSTRALIA is more than doubling its contribution to combating the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
FOREIGN Minister Julie Bishop has announced another $10 million in aid, taking Australia’s full contribution to $18 million.
The commitment follows an urgent call from the United Nations for more help. The UN is seeking $US50 million ($A54 million) from donors to meet immediate needs over the next four weeks, including for logistics to deliver equipment, materials and supplies to Ebola response operations. On Wednesday, global aid agency Doctors Without Borders said it had rejected $2.5 million from Australia, asking instead for a deployment of desperately-needed medical teams. But Ms Bishop maintains Australia has limited capacity to provide consular assistance in these countries and does not have the capacity to evacuate Australians with Ebola home at this time. “The government has assessed that, at this stage, financial contributions are the best and most efficient way Australia can make a rapid contribution to the global response,” Ms Bishop said in a statement. The outbreak of Ebola, the worst on record, has infected 6500 people and killed almost half, according to the World Health Organisation. The real death rate, taking into account the delay between reporting infection and death, is likely to be much higher.