The African continent is still in the acute phase of the pox epidemic as the number of cases reported since the start of the year has exceeded the 50,000 mark, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has warned. Africa), the specialized health agency of the African Union.
During an online press briefing Thursday evening, Africa CDC Director General Jean Kaseya said 19 African countries had reported 50,840 cases of mpox, including 10,741 confirmed cases and 1,083 deaths since the start of this year. Last week alone, the continent reported 2,532 new cases, including 345 confirmed cases and 32 new deaths.
According to data from the Africa CDC, the number of confirmed cases of mpox in Africa increased by more than 545% this year compared to last year. Central Africa is the region most affected by the epidemic, with 85.8% of all reported cases and 99.4% of deaths.
“We are still in the acute phase of the epidemic and this prompts us to redouble our efforts to control the mpox epidemic in Africa,” the director said.
According to Kaseya, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Burundi, the two countries most affected by the outbreak, accounted for 86.7% of all new confirmed cases reported over the past week.
Also expressing concern over the recent rise in cases of mpox in Uganda as the country continues to record a weekly increase in confirmed cases, the Africa CDC director said 14 African countries are currently experiencing active transmission of the virus.
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