The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) warned on Thursday that the mpox outbreak remains uncontrolled in Africa, with cases continuing to rise in several nations.
The World Health Organization had previously classified the outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern after identifying a new variant.
African countries are struggling to manage this outbreak, which follows closely behind the COVID-19 pandemic, revealing vulnerabilities in health systems unprepared for large-scale public health crises.
According to Africa CDC data, mpox cases have surged by 177%, and deaths have risen by 38.5% compared to the same time last year.
Jean Kaseya, Africa CDC’s director general, expressed concern during a weekly briefing, stating, “Mpox is not under control in Africa. The rising number of cases is alarming for all of us.”
In just one week, 2,912 new cases were recorded, including the first case in Morocco, showing the spread across all four regions of the continent.
Currently, 15 of the 55 African Union member states have reported mpox cases. Kaseya noted, “We are still seeing deaths from mpox in Africa, with 14 people dying in the past week.”
He also highlighted the challenge in countries like Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where two strains of the disease are circulating.
However, due to inadequate surveillance and testing, it’s unclear if other countries are experiencing the same issue.
