MPOCX national health emergency declared, the Africa CDC

Due of the expanding mpox outbreak across the continent, the Africa Centre for Disease Control on Tuesday declared a public health emergency.

Many African nations have been affected by the outbreak, most notably the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, there is a severe and spreading outbreak that has now spread outside the nation. First identified in September 2023, a novel strain of virus has now been found outside of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Over 14,000 cases and 511 deaths have been reported from a serious mpox outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of Congo at the beginning of this year.

For many years, the Democratic Republic of Congo has seen outbreaks of mpox, and the annual number of cases recorded has been continuously rising.

Nonetheless, the number of cases recorded in the first half of this year is equal to that of last year, and the virus has now reached provinces that were previously unaffected.

The Director-General of the Africa CDC, Jean Kaseya, stated during an online media briefing, "With a heavy heart but with an unyielding commitment to our people, to our African citizens, we declare mpox as a public health emergency of continental security."

"Mpox has now spread across borders, affecting thousands of people throughout our continent, tearing families apart, and causing pain and suffering throughout every region of our continent," he declared.

According to Kaseya, the proclamation is a clear call to action rather than just a formality.

It's an acknowledgement that we can't continue to be reactive. We must be proactive and aggressive in our efforts to contain and eliminate this threat,” he added.