Monrovia — The Africa Center for Disease Control raised the alarm over the growing number of cases of the Mpox disease on the continent during an online briefing to give updates on the steps taken by the continental public health watchdog. The center’s Director General Dr. Jean Kaseya said they are consulting various global stakeholders, including the African Union, on declaring a public health emergency.
“We are seeing an increased number of cases.. all five regions are affected,” Kaseya said, noting that in the last five days, six new countries have reported new cases, while 18 more remain at “high risk”. Although a mpox outbreak was reported in 2022 – about the same time the world grappled with the Covid pandemic – this year has seen a rapid spread of the disease across several countries on the continent.
60 percent of the cases in DR Congo are children under 15
Mpox spreads through contact between humans and animals, and with other humans, through physical interaction – including sharing bodily fluids. This worries Kaseya, who believes sexual interaction is a reason for the spike in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. He said 60 percent of the cases in DR Congo are children under 15. “And we know it’s sexual transmission…this one is a major alarm for the world,” he said.
Kaseya said managing cases in affected countries is a cause for concern and appealed for support. He said impediments to tackling the disease include insecurity, inadequate global attention, and limited vaccines. The Africa CDC boss said vaccines are limited while hundreds are getting infected on the continent.
This supports the growing call for more “equitable access” to mpox vaccines – so that countries with the greatest need can acquire them. Africa CDC is negotiating with partners to secure 10 million doses of vaccines for the continent, starting with 200,000 doses.
The first human case of mpox was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a region where the disease has been endemic. During the 2022 outbreak, however, cases began occurring in multiple countries where mpox had not previously occurred.
Kaseya said another explanation for this could be the increasing rate of climate change, which has exposed humans to more wildlife, and advocated a “one-health” approach to dealing with the crisis.