United Nations World Food Program (WFP) Chinese representative Brett Rierson urged the Chinese corporations and wealthy individuals to contribute more to the campaign against the Ebola crisis.

The UN representative said China's wealthy are not contributing enough to the campaign despite the efforts of the Chinese government.

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In a media briefing on Monday, Rierson noted that the agency is welcoming more contributions from the government but is expecting to see greater effort from the wealthy Chinese individuals. He then cited pledges from wealthy individuals from other parts of the world such as the US$50 Million pledge from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the US$25 million pledge from Facebook owner and founder Mark Zuckerberg.

Rierson also said this is the time that these wealthy individuals could make a huge impact through their contributions. He also called on the largest investors in West Africa to donate to the cause to have a massive lifesaving impact on the people in the region.

The most worrisome concern of WFP is the food suppliers in the above mentioned countries as most farmers have abandoned their lands and livestock to seek for safety in places they believe they will not be affected by the spread of the plague. Due to this, the prices of food have increased.

In connection to the contributions, Liberia's ambassador to China, Dudley Thomas, said that they received contributions from some Chinese companies but did not provide further details. He also said he is in a dialogue with some Chinese investors regarding the efforts of WFP.

The spread of the virus is still rampant in West Africa and China has recently announced the total amount of their contribution to the regions greatly affected by the deadly virus.

The contributions include thousands of doses of experimental drugs delivered to Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, and US$6 million in cash given to WFP to help augment the food shortage in the affected areas.

As of now, there are over 4,500 people who have died from the said disease. WFP noted that more contributions are needed although they have already raised around US$59 million for the most hit countries.

The United States has contributed around US$12.67 million but the UN estimated that they might need US$1 billion to sustain the needs of the people in West Africa.

TagsUN, wealthy individuals, Ebola campaign, what is ebola, donations