The Congolese health officials have launched the first mpox vaccination campaign in the mpox suffering country.
On Saturday, October 5, the Democratic Republic of Congo initiated a key step towards combatting the mpox outbreak that has reportedly taken 990 lives in the country while 30,000 suspected and confirmed cases have been recorded since January 2024.
The outbreak, that began spreading from the epicentre in Congo has also affected several other African countries this year.
Congolese health officials held an inauguration ceremony at a hospital in the eastern city of Goma to mark the beginning of this much needed vaccination drive.
The hospital’s health workers were the first to get vaccinated against the virus, reported Reuters.
However, the campaign has been launched at a small level as there are not enough resources to carry it out on a greater level, noted the Health Ministry on Friday, October 4, 2024.
They further revealed that at the moment they only have 265,000 vaccines in stock.
The African director of the World Health Organization (WHO), Matshidiso Moeti stated, “"The rollout of the vaccine marks an important step in limiting the spread of the virus and ensuring the safety of families and communities.”
WHO declared mpox as public health emergency of international concern in August 2024, after a new variant of the virus was identified.
