Rich countries could stop a mpox outbreak in Africa. Donated shots are not enough, so they need several hundred million doses of vaccines. This is according to a Reuters count of official statements, papers, and estimates from non-governmental groups. Countries like Japan, the US, and Canada have been hoarding the vaccines for years in case smallpox, the more serious relative of mpox that was declared eliminated, ever resurfaces. As mpox expanded around the world in 2022, some of the vaccinations were administered outside of Africa.
Africa’s plea for help
Medical experts say that a small amount of these doses may be able to stop the biggest mpox outbreak ever. This is happening in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its neighbouring countries. Africa’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement that fewer than 4 million doses of the projected 18 million to 22 million needed to vaccinate 10 million individuals in the next six months have been promised for donation, depending on the vaccine.
“It’s a political question, not a technical one,”
Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization’s acting chief of epidemic and pandemic prevention, told Reuters. Together with the CDC and other health authorities in Africa, she is advocating for more donations. Van Kerkhove declared,
“Vaccines on shelves are useless.”
“Why wouldn’t we get them to the people who need them right now?”
An outbreak that started in Congo in early 2023 caused the majority of the 1,451 fatalities and 37,500 infections during this epidemic. The CDC for Africa reports that it has spread to 14 African nations. Early October is when the first vaccination campaign in Congo is scheduled to start, utilizing 265,000 donated doses. Head of Congo’s mpox response Cris Kacita stated,
“We could have planned a large-scale campaign and reduced transmission if we’d had more doses earlier.”
Global response falls short
The new strain, called clade Ib, was first found in the Congo and seems to spread more easily through close contact. Health experts are worried about it. Both children and those with immune system disorders like HIV are more susceptible to mpox. Right now, the risk appears to be minimal outside of Africa.
“The majority of this epidemic’s victims are children. It’s not being treated as the initial emergency is,”
Kacita remarked. The sluggish regulatory processes at the WHO and in the Congo, the costly cost of vaccines, and competing health problems made worse by the ongoing violence in the nation have all contributed to the delay in the mpox response. Disease experts say that mumps vaccinations alone are not enough to stop outbreaks. To fight outbreaks effectively, countries affected must also have access to testing and programs to raise awareness. However, the big difference in how many people get vaccinated shows that governments are still not ready to stop viral threats from spreading.
Inequality exacerbates crisis
“The global public’s disregard for measles and other viral threats poses a serious health risk,”
stated Peter Maybarduk, head of Public Citizen’s Access to Medications program in the United States. According to a representative of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, a worldwide organization that assists low-income nations with the cost of vaccinations, all of them are being evaluated for purchase and donation in Africa. For the mpox response, the company has up to $500 million at its disposal. Citing concerns for national security, some affluent nations refused to disclose the amount of vaccines they possess. 200 million doses of LC16 are in Japan, according to a WHO report from 2022. While LC16 is not accessible outside of Japan and needs specific needles to administer, it may be used on children, unlike competing injections. Congo is in talks to get up to 3.5 million LC16 doses from Japan, according to Kacita.
KM Biologics rejected the comment. Congo has requested 3.05 million pills, according to a Japanese health official, but they would not specify when they would be delivered. He would not confirm the extent of the national stockpile, but he stated the 200 million figure reported by the WHO was inaccurate. Adam Houston, a medical policy and advocacy advisor for Medecins Sans Frontieres Canada, thought Canada may have up to 2 million Bavarian Nordic doses in its inventory. This is based on the company’s past statements. The 2022 mpox outbreak outside of Africa was contained with the assistance of this vaccine. The Canadian government said last week that it would provide up to 200,000 doses. Two top Biden administration officials said that the US has enough vaccines to protect its people, even though the agency won’t say how much.
