The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has committed $10 million to tackle the escalating monkeypox outbreak, following a high-level meeting between President Felix Tshisekedi and WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
The announcement wa made via the presidential office’s social media channel, X.
During the meeting, WHO Director-General Tedros praised the DRC for its decisive action and confirmed that the organization would dispatch monkeypox vaccines without delay.
He assured the DRC of the WHO’s continued support not only for monkeypox but also for ongoing immunisation initiatives targeting polio, measles, and malaria, according to Xinhua news agency.
Health Minister Roger Kamba revealed that the monkeypox outbreak has led to over 17,801 suspected cases and 610 deaths.
The majority of these cases are emerging from conflict-ridden provinces, which are home to most of the DRC’s 7.3 million internally displaced persons.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees described the situation as exacerbating an already dire humanitarian crisis.
In response to the outbreak, the WHO has initiated a Global Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan aimed at halting human-to-human transmission of the disease.
This plan seeks to coordinate efforts across global, regional, and national levels.
“The monkeypox outbreaks in the DRC and neighbouring countries can be controlled, and can be stopped,” stated Tedros, emphasizing the potential for containment with effective, coordinated action.
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