Mpox: Africa’s CDC poised to declare for first time ever a “public health emergency of continental security”

Testing-for-Mpox Nurse Christian Musema takes a sample from a child declared a suspected case mpox at the treatment center in Munigi in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the virus has been surging. Cases have also been identified in four other countries in East Africa. Arlette Bashizi/Reuters

Luke 21:11 There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.

Important Takeaways:

  • The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has never done anything like this before.
  • Since the beginning of last year, mpox cases have been surging in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with children making up the majority of the 14,000 reported cases and 511 deaths so far in 2024.
  • In the last couple weeks, there’s been a new and alarming development. Mpox has been detected in countries that have never previously identified cases.
  • It is with past health emergencies in mind that Africa CDC is trying to move quickly and garner international support.
  • The World Health Organization has also taken note of the evolving mpox situation. This week it announced that the group is convening an emergency committee to determine whether it will make a similar declaration to that of Africa CDC, designating the situation a public health emergency of international concern. “The committee will meet as soon as possible,” says WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
  • There’s concern about mpox in the U.S. as well. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an mpox health alert this week.

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