China needs to share its wealth and step up in the fight against Ebola, says the United Nations' World Food Programme (WFP).

So far, China has contributed approximately $40 million to fight the Ebola epidemic, which has claimed more than 4,000 lives and has spread beyond Africa to Europe and the U.S. This includes $6 million to the WFP.

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The WFP is the food assistance branch of the United Nations, and it is the world's largest humanitarian organization addressing hunger and food security.

However, the UN group says this is not enough and China needs to pull its weight as the world combats the outbreak of the deadly virus. By comparison, that $40 million for the entire country seems low considering that The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has pledged $50 million to the fight, and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife donated $25 million.

"Where are the Chinese billionaires and their potential impact?" said Brett Rierson, the WFP's representative in China. "Because this is the time that they could really have such a huge impact." said Brett Rierson, the organization's representative in China, at a press conference.

Noticeably absent from making any pledges to combat Ebola is Alibaba Chairman Jack Ma who is worth $12.5 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. As is Joseph Tsai, the company's executive vice chairman, who has a net worth of $4.8 billion.

But not only have the Chinese billionaire lagged behind, but so have China's major corporations, according to the UN's WFP.

"You can ask the same thing of the corporate sector," said Rierson. Particularly "being the largest investors in West Africa right now."

However, China hasn't been completely absent in the world's fight against Ebola.

Sihuan Pharmaceutical Holdings Group has already sent several thousand doses of an experimental Ebola drug to Africa, and getting ready to start clinical trials soon.

Dudley Thomas, Liberia's ambassador to China, told Reuters of one donation of $100,000 from a large Chinese construction company that does business in the country, but that there were few others.

He added Liberia's government was in talks with other large Chinese investors, including the state-owned China-Africa Development Fund, a private equity fund focusing facilitating investment between China and Africa.

Some 1 million Chinese nationals live in Africa, with about 10,000 in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.

The World Food Programme said it had only raised one-third of what it needs for the anti-Ebola fight. 

TagsWorld Food Programme, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Ma, China’s companies and billionaires lag behind in fight against Ebola, China's companies, billionaires must step up to fight Ebola