Ebola Update - Noon Briefing (24 December 2014)

United Nations - Ebola Update by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesman for the United Nations Secretary-General at the Daily Noon Briefing at UN Headquarters in New York (24 December 2014).
The UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) announced today that a staff member was tested positive for Ebola.
As you would recall, this is the fourth case of Ebola in the mission. Two of the affected UNMIL personnel died of the disease only three months ago.
Another member of UNMIL’s personnel who contracted the disease has recovered and was discharged from hospital earlier this week.
The Head of the Mission, Karin Landgren, said that the confirmation of this new case is a stark reminder that we must all remain vigilant until there are no cases in Liberia or West Africa.
She added that Liberians can be proud of the progress they have made against Ebola since October, but urged them all to take extra care as they gather with friends and families over the holidays.
The Mission is taking all necessary measures to mitigate any possible further transmission – both within the mission and beyond.
In line with World Health Organization (WHO) protocols, the UNMIL Medical team is conducting robust contact tracing to ensure that all people who came into contact with the staff member while symptomatic are assessed and quarantined.
Still on Ebola, the World Food Programme (WFP) welcomed today a US$1 million grant from the African Development Bank (ADB) to their work in Sierra Leone.
With this grant, WFP will provide food assistance for two months to 30,000 people.
Today food production in Sierra Leone for 2014 is estimated to be 5 percent lower than in 2013 and rice production is expected to dip by as much as 17 per cent in the Kailahun area, which is usually one of the country's most productive agricultural areas but has been severely impacted by Ebola.
In Sierra Leone only, over 11,700 metric tons of food have been distributed to more than 1.1 million people.
And in all three worst-impacted countries, WFP’s assistance has reached more than 2.2 million people, including villages and communities in quarantine or isolation.
Global Ebola Response Website