Uganda Reinforces Surveillance to Prevent Mpox Outbreak 

To prevent mpox from entering the country, Uganda has increased surveillance along its borders with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a hotspot for the virus.

Uganda currently has no active cases of mpox, according to the Ministry of Health. The two imported cases from late July were treated and resolved without incident.

At this point, the ministry has designated more than 20 regions along its border with the DRC as high-risk zones for mpox transmission. Uganda’s health authorities have also implemented a nationwide training programme for health professionals to help them discover and isolate suspected cases.

“We have already intensified our risk communication for prevention, we have also ensured that our laboratory systems are triggered to ensure that they are quick to pick up any suspected cases for testing,” said Emmanuel Ainebyoona, a senior public relations officer at the ministry.

Last Wednesday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, a public health emergency of worldwide concern, increasing concerns about the disease’s potential for global spread.

Uganda is now in contact with WHO to obtain potentially life-saving mpox vaccinations as part of its readiness and response strategy against the virus disease.

According to the WHO, the current mpox outbreak, which originated in the DRC, has been aggravated by the introduction of a more dangerous new variation of the virus, Clade 1b, which has a mortality rate estimated at 3.6%, much higher than prior strains.

According to the African Union’s health office, the number of new mpox cases reported in 2024 is up 160 percent from the same period in 2023.