Africa is experiencing a surge in mpox cases, with nearly 4,000 reported in the past week, according to the continent’s public health authority on Tuesday. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) reiterated calls for long-awaited vaccines, noting that their arrival in the most affected country, Congo, has been delayed.
Dr. Jean Kaseya, head of Africa CDC, reported that 81 deaths from mpox were recorded in Africa over the past week, bringing the total number of cases to 22,863 and the death toll to 622. Kaseya noted that around 380,000 doses of mpox vaccines have been promised by Western partners, including the European Union and the United States. However, this is less than 15% of the doses needed to control the outbreaks in Congo, the epicenter of the global health emergency.
In 2022, after mpox outbreaks outside Africa, wealthy nations quickly mobilized vaccines and treatments from their stockpiles. However, Africa has received only a fraction of these doses despite repeated pleas from its governments.
The first batch of vaccine doses intended to combat the new outbreaks in Congo is expected to arrive by September 1, following delays related to documentation and emergency authorization, Kaseya said. “It is just a matter of now waiting on the U.S. government on the transfer of those vaccines,” he added.
Congo has also requested at least 2 million doses of vaccines from Japan, which are particularly effective in protecting children, with negotiations reportedly “quite advanced.”
The new mpox variant, first detected in Congo and linked to ongoing outbreaks, is already causing “significant” community-level transmission in other regions, according to Kaseya.
