Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the recent upsurge of mpox cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and other African countries a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus took the decision following advice from an emergency committee of independent experts, a WHO news release says. “The emergence of a new clade of mpox, its rapid spread in eastern DRC, and the reporting of cases in several neighboring countries are very worrying. On top of outbreaks of other mpox clades in DRC and other countries in Africa, it’s clear that a coordinated international response is needed to stop these outbreaks and save lives,” the release added.
Dr Tedros emphasized the need for a coordinated international response to contain these outbreaks and save lives. “Significant efforts are already underway in close collaboration with communities and governments, with our country teams working on the frontlines to help reinforce measures to curb mpox. With the growing spread of the virus, we’re scaling up further through coordinated international action to support countries bring the outbreaks to an end,” he added.
WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, said efforts are already underway to reinforce measures against mpox in affected areas.
This is the second PHEIC declaration for mpox in two years, following a global outbreak in 2022 that was declared over in May 2023.
