The African Union's health watchdog has warned that the Mpox epidemic is not yet under control, and called for resources to be made available to avoid a "more severe" pandemic than Covid-19.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Africa (CDC), more than 1,100 people have died from Mpox in Africa, where some 48,000 cases have been recorded since January.
Cases are still rising in several countries as the continent struggles to contain another major outbreak coming on the heels of Covid-19, which exposed Africa's weak health system.
"The situation is still not under control. Overall, we are still on an upward trend," Ngasi Ngongo, CDC's chief of staff for Africa and head of the executive bureau, said at an online briefing.
So far, 19 countries in Africa have reported cases of smallpox after an infection was detected in Mauritius, a magnet for tourists drawn by its stunning white beaches and crystal-clear waters.
The situation is particularly worrying in Uganda, which this week reported its first death from the virus.
Yet the means to contain the outbreak are insufficient, the Center for Disease Control in Africa has warned.
"What we need is continued political and financial mobilisation," Ngongo said, adding that this was a necessary measure to stop mpox becoming another pandemic "that would be much more severe than Covid-19".
Mpox, formerly known as simian smallpox, is caused by a virus that is transmitted to humans from infected animals, but can also be passed from person to person in close physical contact.
The smallpox virus disease causes fever, body aches, swollen lymph nodes and a rash that blisters, and has two main subtypes - clade 1 and clade 2.
The United Kingdom has announced that it has found the country's first case of the newest variant of smallpox, clade 1b.
Most of the deaths have been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the epicentre of the outbreak, which earlier this month launched a vaccination campaign.| BGNES
