UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will travel to Ebola-hit countries in West Africa this week to raise awareness about the health crisis, UN officials said on Tuesday.

Mr Ban is to make the announcement at a year-end press conference at the United Nations on Wednesday, a UN official said.

The UN chief is to visit Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Mali to take stock of international efforts to beat back the world's worst outbreak of the disease, which has left more than 6,800 people dead.