African continent finally to receive 1st mpox vaccines

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday the 50,000 doses will be used first for health workers.

Associated Press

Dec 3, 2022

Africa’s top public health body says the continent is set to receive its first batch of mpox vaccines as a donation from South Korea.

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday the 50,000 doses will be used first for health workers and people living in the hardest-hit areas. No timing was given for the doses’ arrival.

This image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) shows a colorized transmission electron micrograph of mpox particles (red) found within an infected cell (blue), cultured in the laboratory that was captured and color-enhanced at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Md. (NIAID via AP, File)

The continent this year has recorded 202 deaths from mpox — formerly known as monkeypox — with a fatality rate of 19.3% across 13 countries.

And yet African health authorities for months have pursued vaccines mostly in vain as major outbreaks were reported in rich, Western countries for the first time.