WHO launches plan to fight monkeypox

GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization on Monday launched a six-month plan to halt the spread of monkeypox by increasing staff in countries and improving surveillance, prevention and response.

The WHO estimates that the plan, which will run from September to February next year, will require 135 million dollars and will seek to improve access to vaccines, especially in African countries hardest hit by the recent outbreak.

“Outbreaks of monkeypox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighbouring countries can be controlled and stopped,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement.

The agency is “significantly increasing” its staff in affected countries, he added. The WHO declared the current smallpox outbreak a global health emergency in mid-August.

Also on Monday, German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said Germany would donate 100,000 doses of monkeypox vaccine to affected countries from its military reserves, the German news agency dpa reported.

As of Tuesday last week, Congo — the worst-affected country — reported more than a thousand cases in the previous week.

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that as of Thursday, more than 21,300 confirmed or suspected cases and 590 deaths had been reported this year in 12 African countries.

Monkeypox belongs to the same family of viruses as smallpox, but usually causes milder symptoms such as fever, chills and body aches. It is usually spread through human contact, including sexual intercourse. Those who suffer a more severe case may suffer lesions on the face, hands, chest and genitals.