The Democratic Republic of Congo has received 50,000 Mpox vaccine doses from the USA as part of ongoing efforts to curb the spread of the virus and enhance public health response.
On Tuesday, the Congolese authorities reported that a shipment of 50,000 smallpox vaccine doses had arrived from the United States. This came after a previous delivery was received from the European Union one week prior.
According to the coordinator of the Congolese Committee for the Fight against Monkeypox, Cris Kacita Osako, vaccination will first be administered on October 2 to adults residing in Equateur, South Kivu and Sankuru provinces – three areas that have been greatly impacted by this disease. The information was conveyed to Associated Press.
The capital of Congo, which is at the heart of the epidemic, received its initial shipment of smallpox vaccine last week. The JYNNEOS vaccine batch consisted of 100,000 doses and was produced by Danish firm Bavarian Nordic; it was provided as a donation from the European Union’s health emergency agency HERA. Another set totaling up to 100,000 more vaccines were transported over the weekend in addition to this first delivery.
The JYNNEOS vaccine provided by the USA will consist of 50,000 doses.
The 250,000 doses provided is a mere portion of the required three million to cease smallpox outbreaks in Congo – the center of global health crisis as stated by officials. Additional contributions from EU nations to provide an extra 500,000 doses have been promised; however no timeline has been disclosed for their arrival.
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There has been a significant rise in the number of smallpox infections and deaths on the continent, with 5,549 confirmed cases and 643 associated fatalities since early 2024. The majority (91%) of these cases occurred in Congo while children under the age of fifteen are most affected in both Congo and Burundi – which is ranked second-most impacted nation.
A continent-wide response plan was launched by the African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in collaboration with the World Health Organization to tackle the smallpox epidemic. This came three weeks after a global emergency was declared by WHO on epidemics affecting 12 African countries.
Last week, CDC Africa Director General Dr Jean Kaseya declared that the Democratic Republic of Congo has issued an emergency permit for a vaccine. Although it has been implemented among adults in Europe and America successfully, it will only be administered to adult populations temporarily. Priority shall be given first to those who have had intimate contact with infected individuals as well as sex workers when distributing this solution within restricted parameters.
According to Laurent Muschel, the Director General of HERA, the European Medicines Agency is reviewing more information with plans to inoculate 12-17-year-olds by month-end. Kacita Osako informed AP that Japan will deliver the upcoming set of smallpox vaccines this weekend; however, no dosage details were disclosed.
