Chinese help build center to fight Ebola

A Chinese medical worker demonstrates equipment to test body temperature at the China-Sierra Leone Friendship Hospital in Freetown. Huang Xianbin / Xinhua

Peacekeepers at Liberian mission assist with hospital, health experts

The Chinese contingent of the UN Mission in Liberia will help build an Ebola Quarantine and Control Center in the capital city of Monrovia, a UN spokesman said on Tuesday in New York.

Stephane Dujarric told a regular briefing at the UN headquarters that the project would take 21 days to complete.

He said that of the 44 UNMIL personnel who had been quarantined following two infections in the mission, 42 have completed their quarantine period. The two remaining members are expected to complete the quarantine period by Friday.

The Ebola epidemic has resulted in the death of two UNMIL members in recent weeks. The peacekeeping mission said it has conducted immediate and robust contact tracing and quarantine measures.

Established in 2003, UNMIL has a mandate to support the Liberian government to solidify peace and stability and to protect civilians. It has around 6,000 military troops and police.

Last week, China pledged new aid worth $82 million to help West Africa fight the Ebola outbreak, taking total Chinese aid to the region to combat the deadly disease to $122 million.

The new Chinese aid includes sending cash, materials and health experts to Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea - three countries hardest hit by the Ebola crisis. China will build a 100-bed treatment center in Liberia, where the epidemic is most serious, and send doctors and nurses there for its operation.