WHO declares mpox a global health emergency

GENEVA, Switzerland — The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) declared the mpox surge in Africa a global public health emergency, sounding its highest possible alarm over the worsening situation.

Worried by the rise in cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the spread to nearby countries, the WHO hastily convened a meeting of experts to study the outbreak.

«Today, the emergency committee met and advised me that in its view, the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (Pheic). I have accepted that advice,» WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference.

A Pheic is the highest level of alarm under the International Health Regulations, which are legally binding on 196 countries.

«The detection and rapid spread of a new clade of mpox in eastern DRC, its detection in neighboring countries that had not previously reported mpox, and the potential for further spread within Africa and beyond is very worrying,» said Tedros.

«It's clear that a coordinated international response is essential to stop these outbreaks and save lives.

»This is something that should concern us all."

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The UN health agency's decision comes a day after the African Union's health watchdog declared its own public health emergency over the growing outbreak.

Tedros said the more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths reported so far this year in DR Congo had already exceeded last year's total.

«The emergence last year and rapid spread of clade 1b in DRC, which appears to be spreading mainly through sexual networks, and its detection in countries neighboring DRC is especially concerning,» he said, citing Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda.

Dimie Ogoina, who chaired the emergency committee, said the 15 members present unanimously thought the mpox upsurge was an extraordinary event.

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He said many members feared the known situation in Africa was «actually the tip of the iceberg,» because without more robust surveillance, «we don't have the full picture.»

Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO's epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention director, insisted: «We can stop transmission of mpox with a concerted