Ebola crisis: French President Hollande to visit Guinea

French President Francois Hollande is to arrive in Guinea, becoming the first Western leader to visit a nation hit hard by the deadly Ebola virus.

He will deliver "a message of solidarity" to Guinea, where more than 1,200 have died of Ebola.

France has pledged 100m euros (£79m; $125m) to help tackle the disease by opening several care centres in Guinea. Continue..

The outbreak was now "stable" in the West African country, the World Health Organization (WHO) said last week.

There were still some flare ups in the south-east, but things were improving in other prefectures, WHO co-ordinator Dr Guenael Rodier told the BBC.

More than 5,400 people have died in the latest outbreak, with Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia the worst hit.

Mobile clinics

President Hollande is expected to arrive in Guinea's capital Conakry later on Friday - the first Western head of state to visit the country since the first cases of the disease in March.

During his one-day visit, he will tour healthcare centres and take part in round-table discussions on Ebola, according to the AFP news agency.

In addition, Paris plans to send mobile health clinics to Guinea and fund 200 beds for Ebola patients.

After Guinea, President Hollande will fly to Senegal to take part in a summit of French-speaking leaders.

Guinea has not been as badly hit by Ebola as neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia.

But eight months since the outbreak was first declared, some still do not believe Ebola is a real disease, and health teams trying to trace new potential cases are still being refused entry to some villages, says the BBC's Tulip Mazumdar in the capital Conakry.

Ebola is spread only through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person showing symptoms, such as fever or vomiting.

People caring for the sick or handling the bodies of people infected Ebola are therefore especially vulnerable.