In a recent report, the World Health Organisation has stated that there have been almost 30,000 suspected cases of mpox in Africa since the start of this year. According to the U.N. health body, a majority were in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has been grappling with an uptick in cases, along with its neighbour Burundi.
WHO reports almost 30,000 suspected mpox cases in Africa since the start of the year
Atumisi Anaclet treats a sex worker with mpox on Sept. 4, 2024, in a hospital in Kamituga, in eastern Congo's South Kivu province
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Moses Sawasawa/AP Photo
In its report, the WHO also said that there have been more than 800 deaths in the same time period as a result of suspected mpox. It comes after the WHO's director general declared the outbreak of the disease in parts of Africa a public health emergency - the organisation's highest level of alert.
Beyond the African continent, a handful of cases have also been confirmed in countries including Sweden and Pakistan. The virus that causes the disease was first discovered decades ago, but it has changed over the past several years, resulting in the disease spreading more easily between humans.
Vaccines against the virus are expected to be carried out in the Democratic Republic of Congo from October 2nd.