The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has announced that the mpox upsurge continues to meet the criteria of a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) outlined in the International Health Regulations (IHR).
This latest revelation follows the fourth meeting of the IHR Emergency Committee regarding the upsurge of mpox, held on 5 June 2025. The Committee, recognising progress in the capacity to respond in certain countries, advised the Director-General that the event continues to constitute a PHEIC, based on the continuing rise in the number of cases, including a recent increase in West Africa, and likely ongoing undetected transmission in some countries beyond the African continent.
The organisation first declared the viral disease a PHEIC in August 2024 and now maintains that the ongoing operational challenges in responding to the event, including concerning surveillance and diagnostics, as well as a lack of funding, make prioritising response interventions challenging and require continued international support.
The committee has now issued revised temporary recommendations to Member States experiencing mpox outbreaks to guide them as they choose interventions which could help curb further transmission.
The upsurge of mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its spread to neighbouring countries was first determined to be a public health emergency of international concern by the Director-General on 14 August 2024. Since then, the Emergency Committee has met on three additional occasions, each time advising the Director-General that the event continues to constitute a PHEIC.
At their latest press conference, the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) revealed that apart from Uganda, DRC and Burundi, which have for most of this year been the most affected, they are seeing more countries on the continent reporting their first cases.
Dr Ngashi Ngongo, the Mpox incident Commander at the Africa CDC, says Togo, Ghana and Ethiopia are among the countries that reported their first cases in May, and Ethiopia has already recorded one death of an infant.
Overall, Ngashi told journalists that already, Africa has recorded 100% of all the cases the continent had in 2024, and yet it’s just five months into the year. He warns that mpox cases are likely to worsen by the end of 2025.
Meanwhile, Sierra Leone is currently the continent’s most affected, having accounted for fifty-three percent of all the new cases Africa recorded last week. Cumulatively, the country had recorded 4032 cases as of Friday, with 492 being newly confirmed last week.
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