Government pledges €780,000 in Ebola aid

The Government has announced that it is to provide almost €780,000 to fund ambulance and burial teams in Sierra Leone, where the Ebola virus has claimed the lives of almost 3,000 people.

The additional funding, announced by Minister for Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan and Minister of State for Development Seán Sherlock, will support crisis workers to manage, maintain and fuel a fleet of ambulances and burial vehicles in 12 of Sierra Leone's 14 districts, home to approximately five million people.

Mr Flanagan said it was vital the international community remained "engaged and vigilant" in its response to the Ebola crisis, which has claimed more than 8,000 lives in west Africa since the outbreak began in Guinea in early 2014.