The United States has announced an additional $267 million in aid to support efforts to contain the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The US State Department announced the funding on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, saying the latest assistance would strengthen the response to the epidemic.
“To date, the United States government has provided $887 million in direct health and humanitarian assistance to combat the Ebola outbreak,” the State Department said.
It added that the US was the largest aid provider responding to the latest Ebola outbreak.
The announcement also called on other countries with the capacity to provide more financial support.
The State Department said the funding was intended to “call on capable nations to increase burden sharing to meet the urgency of the moment”.
The appeal comes as the outbreak continues to spread to new parts of the DRC.
Outgoing UN Secretary-General António Guterres had appealed last month for an additional $1.1 billion to support efforts to contain the epidemic.
According to Doctors Without Borders (MSF), the disease continues to spread across the country.
Congolese public health officials say the outbreak has killed more than 3,600 people and infected about 7,500 others since mid-May, making it the worst recorded Ebola epidemic in the DRC.
