Is the monkeypox epidemic a global health emergency? The WHO will answer the question on July 21 at the second meeting of its Emergency Pathology Committee. More than 9,000 cases have been reported in 63 countries; report released Thursday. Africa is not spared.
“For Africa, the threat is grave. Indeed, new WHO analyzes have revealed a 63% increase in the number of zoonotic outbreaks in the African region over the past 10 years to 2022, compared to compared to the previous decade. One in three confirmed public health events in the region over the past decade was a zoonotic disease outbreak,” saidMatshidiso GuestWHO Regional Director for Africa .
More fear than harm ; the situation is not alarming compared to that of 2020.
“Although there has been a noticeable increase in monkeypox cases since April this year compared to the same period in 2021, the good news is that the numbers are still lower than the peak of the 2020 outbreak. , when the region recorded the highest number of monthly cases. After a sudden drop in 2021, 203 confirmed cases of have been recorded in the region since the start of the year.”; explains the regional director.
An upsurge in monkeypox cases has been reported since early May outside countries in West and Central Africa where the disease has long been endemic.
