Mpox vaccines may not reach Africa for months

Monkeypox

Medical personnel review a child suffering from monkeypox in the Democratic Republic of Congo on October 3, 2022. PHOTO | REUTERS

Vaccines to help curb an escalating mpox outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring countries may still not reach the central African country for months even as the World Health Organization considers following Africa’s top public health agency in declaring the outbreak an emergency.

On Tuesday, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention declared a public health emergency of continental concern for the first time ever, and on Wednesday, a WHO-led panel meets to decide if it represents a global threat.