WHO sounds alarm: Monkeypox outbreak a global health emergency

The World Health Organization declared on Wednesday that the spread of monkeypox in Africa is now a global health emergency, the highest level of warning the agency can issue.

The organization, which is concerned about the increase in infections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the spread of the outbreak to neighboring countries, quickly called for a meeting of experts to discuss the outbreak.

"Today, the Emergency Committee met and informed me that in its view the situation constitutes a global health emergency of international concern. I accepted that view," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a news conference.

A "public health emergency of international concern" is the highest level of warning the WHO can issue.

“The detection of a new strain of monkeypox and its rapid spread in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, its detection in neighboring countries that have not previously reported cases, and the potential for further spread in Africa and beyond are of great concern,” Ghebreyesus said.

"It is clear that a coordinated international response is essential to stop the outbreak and save lives," he added, noting that everyone must be involved.

"The emergence and rapid spread of the 1B strain in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which appears to be spreading mainly through sexual networks, and its detection in countries neighbouring the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is very worrying and is one of the main reasons behind my decision to convene this Emergency Committee meeting," he said at the start of the Emergency Committee meeting.

Symptoms of the disease

The decision came after the African Union's health body declared a public health emergency on Tuesday due to the outbreak of monkeypox (Embox) on the continent.

The disease broke out in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the virus was first discovered in humans in 1970, and has spread to other countries.

Ghebreyesus said the number of infections, more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths recorded so far this year in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, has exceeded the total recorded last year.

The sub-strain of the 1B lineage that has been circulating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since September 2023 causes more severe illness than the 2B lineage, with a higher mortality rate.

Monkeypox is an infectious disease caused by a virus that is transmitted to humans from infected animals, but can also be transmitted between humans through direct physical contact.

The declaration of a “public health emergency of international concern” triggers emergency responses in countries around the world under legally binding international health rules.

Wednesday's announcement is the second in a row regarding monkeypox, although the latest focuses on a different, more deadly strain of the virus.

A PHEIC has only been declared seven times since 2009, with outbreaks of swine flu, polio, Ebola, Zika, Ebola again, and then COVID-19 and monkeypox.

Symptoms of the virus include a rash, malaise, fever, and swollen lymph nodes, as well as chills, headache, and muscle pain.

Source: Agencies