WHO: Mpox is 'not the new Covid-19'
The World Health Organization (WHO) does not see mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, as "the new Covid", said Hans Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, on Tuesday.
"Mpox is not the new Covid. Neither the clade 1 variant that caused the current epidemic in Central and East Africa, nor the clade 2 variant that caused the 2022 epidemic," Kluge said during a press conference.
He said there were still many unknowns about the mpox variant but that "we know how to fight mpox", referring to the clade 2 variant. Unlike at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the world "already knows a lot" about the infectious viral disease, Kluge said.
Public health emergency
However, the WHO recognises the risk that mpox could spread internationally again after an outbreak in 2022. Following outbreaks of mpox in the Democratic Republic of Congo and several neighbouring countries, the WHO declared an international public health emergency last week.
The new and more contagious clade 1b variant first appeared in Congo and has since been identified in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Sweden. The WHO regional director argued that Africa needs Europe's help to fight the mpox outbreak.
"Europe must show solidarity. Solidarity with the affected people and communities," said Kluge. "We can and must fight mpox together. Do we opt for systems to control and eradicate mpox globally? Or do we start a new round of panic followed by neglect?"
© PHOTO KAREN MINASYAN / AFP
Related news
