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 The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said on
Sept. 16 that $988 million is needed to tackle the deadly
hemorrhagic fever over the next six months. Since then $365 million
has been committed to stop Ebola in Liberia, Sierra Leone and
Guinea, which have been hit hardest by the epidemic.
Nearly all that money was donated directly to U.N. agencies and
nonprofits working in West Africa with just $100,000 paid by
Colombia into the trust fund set up by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon,
according to U.N. records.
Some diplomats and officials said many donors had made commitments
to U.N. agencies before the trust fund was established. Others said
donors were already overstretched and suggested they might be wary
of how money put into the trust fund would be spent.
"This is a very serious problem," Ban said of the lack of money in
the trust fund. He said that while he appreciated the support given
to the U.N. Ebola response so far, it was time more countries with
the capacity to help increased assistance.
"It's time that those other countries who really have capacity,
(that) they would provide financial support and other logistical
support," he told reporters on Thursday.
Dr. David Nabarro, who is heading the U.N. response to the Ebola
crisis, said the trust fund was intended to offer "flexibility in
responding to a crisis which every day brings new challenges; it
allows the areas of greatest need to be identified and funds to be
directed accordingly."
World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said on Thursday the world does
not have a choice in whether to support the Ebola fight.
"It is not a matter of choosing whether to do it or not. It's just a
question of when we pay the price for it," Kim told a Reuters
summit.
"Countries need to support the U.N. fund. They have to step up and
they have to put the money in right now. It is the most rational
thing to do from humanitarian, public health and economic
perspective. It is the right thing to do," he said.
'PRETTY DISAPPOINTING'
Erin Hohlfelder, policy director for global health for international
campaign and advocacy group ONE, said the response to the U.N.
appeal was "pretty disappointing" and that it was important to
coordinate contributions so "we don't let aid resources go to
waste."
"We have enough speeches and enough rhetoric that it starts to feel
the case is solved," she said. "We're really concerned that until
those speeches and that rhetoric translate into real services on the
ground, we're not doing much to ebb the flow of this crisis."
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Nearly 4,500 people have died from the worst Ebola outbreak on
record, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, with
confirmed, probable and suspected cases of Ebola reported in seven
countries, including the United States.
The United Nations has established a special mission, known as
UNMEER, in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea to coordinate efforts to
contain Ebola, which is spread through direct contact with body
fluids from an infected person.
"We are hopeful that in the coming days and weeks we will see more
countries investing in the Fund, using this mechanism to support the
coordinated U.N. response on the ground. There are critical funding
needs that must be met now," Nabarro said.
The fund is expecting to receive an additional $19 million.
Australia has committed to a contribution of more than $8.7 million,
and Chile, Estonia, India and Romania have made non-binding pledges,
according to a U.N. document.
The United Nations relies on donors, agencies and nonprofits to
inform its Financial Tracking Service of their cash or in-kind
contributions to the Ebola response and the list is by no means
complete.
In addition to the $365 million in cash and contributions of
resources already registered with the United Nations, another $204
million in pledges have been made and are yet to be filled.
The $365 million has been committed by 28 countries, the African
Union, the European Union, the World Bank, the African Development
Bank and several foundations and corporations.
(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Editing by Tom
Brown, Toni Reinhold)
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