WHO declares mpox a global health emergency as new form of virus emerges

The World Health Organization declared mpox outbreaks in Congo and elsewhere on the African continent, a global emergency on August 14, 2024. Cases have been detected in 13 African countries, while more than 96 per cent of all cases and deaths were reported in Congo. Previously known as monkeypox, a new and deadlier strain of the disease was found to be spreading this year, with few vaccine doses available in Africa.