The incoming EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management and EU Coordinator for the Ebola response, Christos Stylianides, Monday said the international community underestimated danger and extent of threat of Ebola disease.
"The Ebola epidemic is putting the entire international community to the test. Time is of the essence. The lives of thousands of people in West Africa rest in our ability to take action today. Not tomorrow," he told journalists in Brussels.
EU and its member states has mobilised over 800 million euro to fight the epidemic, he noted.
"We have sent medical and humanitarian experts to the affected countries and employed medical laboratories on the ground. I plan to visit the region in the second week of November to express our solidarity in person," he announced.
Stylianides said that with the incoming EU High-Representative, Federica Morgherini, "we will make sure there is a joint action to raise political awareness in countries and in regions.
"At the same time, I will make sure our response is linked to that of our international partners, the UN, the African Union and the USA," he added.
The World Health Organisation says death toll from Ebola has risen to 4,447, mainly in West Africa.