Health and Science

As Liberia sees 'light at the end of the tunnel,' Ebola funding slow to come in

Pedestrians walk past a mural showing the symptoms of the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia.
James Giahyue | Reuters

The death toll from Ebola may have topped 4,000, international health officials announced Friday, as the United Nations raised concerns that its funding goals to fight the disease are not being met.

The latest report on Ebola from the World Health Organization revealed that the global death toll may have hit 4,033. This is the first time that figure has crossed 4,000, as a Wednesday report estimated less than 3,900 deaths.

WHO's update also revealed that there have been as many as 8,676 cases—with 8,376 of those concentrated in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Also on Friday, Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson revealed that the United Nations has received only about 25 percent of its requested $1 billion to fight Ebola.

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This comes as some are predicting the disease could be worse than previously forecasted.

Speaking at an event in London on Thursday, Dr. Marc Sprenger, the director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, said that by January there will be between 500,000 and 1.5 million cases of the deadly disease globally.

Still, there are some positive international headlines concerning the Ebola crisis, with Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf telling the Christian Broadcasting Network that she sees a "light at the end of the tunnel" as the nation becomes better equipped.

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