Liberia's leader is urging the United States and other countries to keep up their support to the West African nation as it recovers from the Ebola epidemic and refocuses attention on infrastructure projects that will better position it to tackle future outbreaks of disease.

In an interview with The Associated Press on Sunday, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said Liberia needs outside help to provide for basics such as power to keep hospital equipment running, roads for the sick to access medical facilities, and clean water to prevent diseases from spreading.

Liberia was one of the countries hardest hit in the ongoing Ebola outbreak, the largest in history. It has seen more than 9,000 confirmed, suspected and probable cases and 3,900 deaths, but infection rates have fallen sharply.