North Korea's health authorities are stepping up efforts to prevent an outbreak of Ebola in the nation, its state media reported Thursday.

The North is toughening quarantine measures at ports, airports and border areas, the Korean Central TV Broadcasting Station quoted a health ministry official as saying.

The official stressed the importance of "responsible medical check-ups" on the North's people returning from West Africa and other countries hit with the virus as well as foreign visitors.

The North's main newspaper, the Rodong Sinmun, also carried a report of the rapid spread of Ebola around the world and related symptoms.

In a Sept. 24 report, the official Korean Central News Agency said the North is in the midst of a "brisk campaign" against Ebola.

It said related authorities took measures to "develop preventive medicine against Ebola with regular sanitation and anti-epidemic work." (Yonhap)