Ebola: World Bank lowers 2014 growth for worst-hit nations

The World Bank has revised downwards its 2014 GDP growth projections for the three nations worst hit by the current Ebola outbreak - Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

"The Ebola epidemic continues to cripple the economies," it said.

Its report comes as bank President Jim Yong Kim begins a two-day visit to West Africa to assess the impact.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says 5,987 people have died from Ebola in the three nations.

The latest World Bank report still shows positive projected growth there for 2014, but at much lower rates.

It said that "all three countries had been

Ebola could strike 20,000 in six weeks, "rumble on for years" - study

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa could infect 20,000 people as soon as early November unless rigorous infection control measures are implemented, and might "rumble on" for years in a holding pattern, researchers said on Tuesday.

In an article in the New England Journal of Medicine, experts from the World Health Organization and Imperial College said that infections will continue climbing exponentially unless patients are isolated, contacts traced and communities enlisted.

The WHO, in an initial roadmap issued on Aug 28, predicted that the virus could strike 20,000 people within the next nine months. The current death toll is at least 2,811 out of 5,864 cases, the U.N. agency says.

The latest study, marking six months from March 23, when the WHO says it was informed of the Ebola outbreak in southeastern Guinea, reflects projections based on the data from a third wave of the virus in Guinea, Sierra Leone and worst-hit Liberia.

"With exponential growth, you'll see that

Ebola could wreck W/Africa economies, warns World Bank

The Ebola outbreak could have a catastrophic impact on the economies of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the World Bank says.

The organisation says the economic impact of the virus could "grow eight-fold" in the "already fragile states".

However, it says the cost can be limited if the epidemic - and the accompanying fear - is contained by a fast global response.

Ebola has killed 2,461 people in West Africa - the largest ever outbreak.

US President Barack Obama has called the latest outbreak "a threat to global security", and announced a larger US role in fighting the virus. The measures announced included ordering 3,000 US troops to the region and building new healthcare facilities.

The UN Security Council is to hold an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the epidemic.

It is expected to