The African Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), part of the African Union, has released a recent report highlighting an increase in mpox virus infections across Central Africa. The Democratic Republic of Congo has reported over a thousand new cases within just one week.
On Wednesday, media sources conveyed that the African Union health agency has expressed “serious concern” regarding the escalating spread of the virus in neighboring Burundi and the Central African Republic.
The report indicates that the Democratic Republic of Congo remains the most affected country in this outbreak, with nearly 18,000 cases recorded since the beginning of 2024. This includes more than a thousand new cases in the past week alone. In response, Kinshasa has initiated a $49 million response plan, with initial funding announced following an emergency meeting aimed at reassuring authorities about swift control measures against the virus.
Jean Kassi, the director-general of the CDC, remarked on the alarming spread of the virus in several neighboring countries, stating, “There is an alert coming from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic, where we are witnessing an increase in both deaths and infections. Even if no new countries are affected, the virus continues to advance, not only in Africa but also on other continents.”
According to the report, the number of new cases in Burundi has doubled within a week, reaching 572 infections, while the Central African Republic reported 57 new cases, bringing its total to 263.
Conversely, Uganda, Rwanda, and Kenya—countries that detected their first cases last July—have not reported any new transmissions. The same holds true for Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia, as noted in the CDC report, which further states that no new African countries have been impacted by the outbreak in the past week.
However, the National Institute of Public Health in Côte d’Ivoire confirmed 28 cases, including one death in Abidjan.
