TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Ebola virus has claimed more than 1,300 lives in West Africa, but its impact is far from being limited to public health as the outbreak has far-reaching consequences on the economies of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

"Ebola is causing deflation rates to soar to 30 percent," said Sierra Leone's Minister for Agriculture Joseph Sam Sesay as reported by BBC.com on Thursday, August 21, 2014.

Agriculture is the most vulnerable sector as it absorbs around 66 percent of Sierra Leonean workforce. According to Sesay, many farmers have escaped to safer areas in an attempt to distance themselves from the outbreaks, thus disrupting production activities in the sector. To date, outbreaks have been recorded in 12 out of the 13 districts in Sierra Leone.

"Planting season has begun but no one is working the fields out of fear, so there is an imminent shortage of food, which is causing prices to fluctuate. Inflation is on the rise, and our currency is suffering because of the pressures to our foreign exchange reserves," said Sesay.

The financial sector is also affected by the outbreaks, with many commercial banks imposing reduced working hours to minimise person-to-person interaction. The transportation sector, including aviation, is among the worst-hit as the frequency of scheduled and cargo flights are reduced following the decline in export transactions.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa has slowed the economic growth in West Africa from 4,5 percent to 3,5 percent.

BBC.COM | CANTIKA BELLIANDARA