As the rate of infection continues to rise, Christian Aid wants the international community to address the problem of food insecurity for more than a million people in quarantine in Sierra Leone.
With hospitals and treatment centres overstretched and at capacity, quarantine measures are key to halting the spread of the virus, says Christian Aid. Adrian Ouvry, Christian Aid's humanitarian programmes manager, said: "Households, neighbourhoods and even entire districts have been isolated in Sierra Leone.
"To break the chain of transmission, you have to limit people's movements, but it is counterproductive to restrict their movement without addressing their basic needs. Endemic poverty, increased food prices and limited support to affected communities are forcing people to leave quarantined homes to fend for their families - increasing the chances of transmitting the virus to others.
"If you are a parent with hungry children, then you have no choice but to think about your day-to-day survival, and in order to survive, families in Sierra Leone are having to break quarantine in order to earn money and buy food. We do not want a situation where a parent is faced with only two options: the risk of exposing themselves, and potentially others, to the virus, or the risk of seeing their children go hungry.
"Governments and aid agencies must recognise that quarantine will only be effective if those who are isolated are guaranteed a sufficient and constant supply of nutritious food and clean water. Otherwise, the issue of hunger and food security will undermine the success of quarantine measures."
The World Food Programme has begun providing emergency food assistance to more than a million people across Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. The rations include a month's worth of rice, pulses, vegetable oil and salt for families. However, the charity claims much more help is needed.
To date, more than 4,500 people in West Africa have died from Ebola. While the global response has focused largely on medical treatment, the threat of widespread hunger could destabilise efforts to curb the outbreak, Christian Aid warns.