UNICEF said Friday that rumors and denial about the Ebola virus that has claimed more than 500 deaths in west Africa were fuelling the spread of the disease and put even more lives at risk.
A statement from UNICEF said its partners were "expanding their activities across the region to halt the spread of the disease by combating rumors, fears and misconceptions".
This week, the WHO convened governments, nongovernmental organizations, regional inter-governmental organizations and United Nations agencies to agree on a set of joint priority actions for the first time since the beginning of the Ebola crisis.
"In response, UNICEF is stepping up its efforts across seven countries – Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, Mali and Gambia – to prevent further spread of the virus, through mobile messaging and ongoing TV, radio and print mass traditional and nontraditional communication campaigns," the statement said.