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International efforts to stop Ebola have gained momentum:

• The UN has pledged 1.1 billion US dollars to ramp up response.
• China has sent 170 medical professionals and an aid package of 32.54 million US dollars, in addition to the 37.4 million US dollars sent earlier. China will also provide the World Health Organization and the African Union with cash funds of 2 million dollars each.
• The US has dispatched 3,000 troops to Liberia to set up a field hospital.
•  Cuba is sending over 400 medical staff and Canada has pledged 30 million US dollars.

Guinea, Sierra Leona and Liberia have been the countries most affected by the virus, with 7,178 cases and 3,338 deaths, according to the World Health Organisation. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says global efforts to fight the epidemic have fallen short.

The outbreak is having a huge impact on children in the West African region. The UN estimates Ebola has orphaned almost 4,000 youngsters already – and says the number could double in coming weeks. Many of the orphans are shunned – but for some, there is help.

Alongside the threat of the virus, there’s also its legacy: stigmatization. Many orphans of Ebola victims are simply abandoned by terrified neighbours.