Rwanda has initiated a vaccination campaign against mpox utilizing 1,000 doses of the vaccine acquired from Nigeria through a bilateral agreement, as informed by the African health agency on Thursday. The vaccinations commenced targeting seven districts with “high-risk populations” adjacent to Congo, according to Dr. Nicaise Ndembi from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). Rwanda received the 1,000 doses from Nigeria, part of a 10,000-dose allocation initially obtained from the United States.
Congo has been the focal point of an outbreak in Africa, reporting 2,912 new cases of mpox and 14 new deaths in the past week alone, summing up to 6,105 cases with 738 fatalities since the onset of the year. Dr. Jean Kaseya, the Director-General of Africa CDC emphasized the urgency of halting this outbreak promptly. There is a surge in demand for more vaccine doses than initially projected by Rwanda and other countries, with African experts estimating a requirement of about 10 million vaccines to quell the ongoing outbreaks.
A deal has been struck between the Japanese government and the authorities in Congo, with an agreement in place for the provision of 3 million doses of the mpox vaccine. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called upon more countries to contribute to the response, stressing the need for international collaboration and support to curb the virus spread.
Congo is gearing up to kick off its vaccination campaign in early October, having received 165,000 doses so far, with additional doses pledged by European nations. Dr. Kaseya emphasized the necessity for manufacturing the vaccine within Africa and highlighted ongoing efforts to collaborate with local manufacturers and partners to facilitate production within the continent.
In a significant development, the World Health Organization announced on Friday the authorization of the first mpox vaccine for adult use, marking a crucial advancement in combating the disease in Africa. The approval of the vaccine created by Bavarian Nordic A/S enables entities like the vaccines alliance Gavi and UNICEF to procure it. However, due to a singular manufacturer, supplies are limited, posing a challenge in meeting the increasing demand for the vaccine.