The World Health Organization (WHO) and key health partners have announced the allocation of 899,000 initial doses of the monkeypox (mpox) vaccine across nine African countries significantly impacted by the virus's recent surge.
This effort, coordinated with the Africa CDC, CEPI, Gavi, and UNICEF, aims to ensure the equitable and efficient use of limited vaccine supplies to curb the outbreak.
The nations receiving the vaccine allocation are the Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, and Uganda.
The majority of the doses—85%—will be directed to the DRC, which has reported four out of every five confirmed cases in Africa this year, reflecting its status as the most affected country.
The initial vaccine doses come from international partners, including Canada, the US, the European Union (via contributions from countries like Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, and others), and the Global Vaccine Alliance (Gavi).
In mid-August, the WHO classified the ongoing mpox outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern, especially as the Ib virus strain spreads in the DRC and surrounding regions.
The Africa CDC also raised its alert level, deeming the outbreak a continental health emergency. This year alone, 19 African nations have reported mpox cases, with the DRC continuing to bear the brunt, registering over 38,000 suspected cases and more than 1,000 deaths.
Health experts underscore the vaccine as a crucial element of a comprehensive mpox response strategy, which also emphasizes timely testing, accurate diagnosis, effective clinical care, infection prevention, and community engagement. Vaccination is recommended to minimize transmission and control the spread of the virus.
In recent weeks, limited vaccination campaigns have started in the DRC and Rwanda. Distributing vaccines to these nine countries marks an important step toward a coordinated approach to ending the outbreak.
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