Friday, 17 June 2022 – 03:56 WIB
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VIVA – Africa has recorded 1,597 suspected cases monkey pox since early 2022, of which 66 have been fatal, Ahmed Ogwell Ouma, acting director of the African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Thursday.
Because this disease cannot be controlled in Africa, he said, the campaign vaccination smallpox to tackle the worldwide epidemic of monkeypox must start in Africa.
“Our position is that vaccination is an important tool and needs to start here in Africa. Here… the burden is greater, the risk is higher, and the geographic distribution is wider,” Ouma said.
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African countries that have reported confirmed cases are Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Morocco, Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, Ouma said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) will convene an emergency committee next week to assess whether the monkeypox outbreak is a public health emergency of international concern.
Monkeypox is endemic in parts of Africa. More than 30 countries where the viral disease is not endemic have reported outbreaks this year, mostly in Europe. (Ant/Between)
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