GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday declared the mpox outbreak in Africa was now a global public health emergency, sounding its highest possible alarm over the worsening situation.
“Today, the emergency committee met and advised me that in its view, the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. I have accepted that advice,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference.
The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has decided to meet as WHO declared mpox a global public health emergency for the second time in the last two years, following an outbreak of the viral infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) that has spread to neighbouring countries.
Mpox can spread through close contact. Usually mild, it is fatal in rare cases. It causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body.
Determining a disease outbreak as a “public health emergency of international concern” or PHEIC — the WHO’s highest level of alert — can accelerate research, funding and international public health measures and cooperation to contain the disease.
The outbreak in DR Congo began with the spread of an endemic strain, known as clade I. But a new variant, clade Ib, appears to spread more easily through routine close contact, including sexual contact. It has spread from Congo to neighbouring countries, including Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, triggering action from the WHO.
“It’s clear that a coordinated international response is essential to stop these outbreaks and save lives,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
On Tuesday, the Africa CDC declared a public health emergency of continental concern for the first time, citing the rapid spread of the disease. This declaration is a rare move that underscores the severity of the outbreak, which has affected multiple countries in Central Africa.
Following this, a WHO-led panel is meeting to assess whether the outbreak constitutes a global health emergency. The outcome of this meeting could significantly influence international response efforts and funding.
Despite these high-level discussions, practical challenges remain. Experts acknowledge that while official declarations can help channel funding and support, the actual impact on the ground may be limited by existing constraints.
Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum, head of the Institut National pour la Recherche Biomedicale (INRB) in DR Congo, emphasized the importance of declarations for mobilizing funding and resources. However, he also highlighted the difficulties faced in a country plagued by conflict and multiple concurrent disease outbreaks, including measles and cholera.
Emmanuel Nakoune, a mpox expert at the Institut Pasteur de Bangui in the Central African Republic, expressed concerns about the effectiveness of declarations if they do not lead to tangible support. “If the big declarations remain just words, it won’t make any material difference,” Nakoune said.
The Africa CDC has received $10.4 million in emergency funding from the African Union to support its mpox response. Director General Jean Kaseya announced a plan to secure 3 million doses of vaccine this year.
However, the immediate supply appears limited. Sources involved in vaccination planning in DR Congo indicate that only 65,000 doses may be available initially, with vaccination campaigns not expected to start before October.
The mpox outbreak in Africa has seen over 15,000 suspected cases and 461 deaths this year, mostly among children in DR Congo. The virus typically causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions and can be fatal in some cases. This year’s outbreaks have been exacerbated by a new strain of the virus affecting refugee camps in eastern Congo, with cases spreading to Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda, and Kenya.
Meanwhile, Ivory Coast and South Africa are experiencing outbreaks linked to a different strain of the virus. The global mpox crisis in 2022, primarily affecting men who have sex with men, prompted the WHO to declare a global emergency, which was lifted after 10 months.
During that outbreak, two vaccines—Bavarian Nordic’s Jynneos and KM Biologics’ LC16—were used, but neither has been available in DR Congo or Africa outside clinical trials. LC16 is the only one approved for use in children.
