The African Union is working to have travel bans imposed on some West African countries to stem the spread of the worst Ebola epidemic lifted despite the World Health Organization (WHO) warning that the deadly diseases could infect thousands more in coming weeks.

The death toll from the Ebola epidemic – which is spreading across West Africa, with Liberia, Guinea, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone already affected – has topped 2,300, with over 4,700 people now infected, the WHO said on Wednesday.

On Monday, AU commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma ask all its member states to “lift all travel bans…to open up economic activities” in the West Africa, but said “proper screening mechanisms must be put in place” to ensure that the disease does not spread to other countries.

Experts have warned that economic losses caused by the restrictions were adding to the continent’s woes, with some arguing that travel bans even slowed medical help getting to affected areas.

Chief Executives of 11 mining and resource firms operating in West Africa – including ArcelorMittal’s Lakshmi Mittal and Randgold’s Mark Bristow – weighed in on this and said some measures were doing more harm than good.

“There is a risk the measures being taken to restrict travel to the countries’ most impacted by the virus will aggravate the growing humanitarian crisis,” they said in a joint statement.

“The economic impact of the Ebola outbreak will be significant,” Carlos Lopes, executive secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), told AFP.

“The economic and social impact will affect many more lives and will increase the longer the epidemic continues,” said Geraldine Fraser Moleketi, Deputy President of the African Development Bank.

Dlamini-Zuma told the AU meeting of the urgent need to “craft a united, comprehensive and collective African response” to the outbreak, but warned that in the battle to stop the spread, African countries “must be careful not to introduce measures that may have more… social and economic impact than the disease itself.”

Border restrictions were hampering trade and food prices were rising, she said, echoing the UN’s warning of serious foot shortages in the worst-hit countries. Lifting travel bans however would be up to individual nations, according to the AU, which is also sending medical teams to help stem Ebola’s spread.