Mpox vaccination shortage delays Kinshasa's drive against outbreak

13/11/2024 15:11

        Democratic Republic of Congo has been unable to launch an mpox vaccination campaign in the capital Kinshasa due to a shortage of doses, the country's response leader said, while cases countrywide continue to rise, especially among children.
        
        The World Health Organization declared mpox a global health emergency in mid-August, after a new strain began spreading from Congo to neighbouring countries.
        
        However, donors have been slow to translate their promises into money and vaccines, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
        Cris Kacita, the head of operations for Congo's mpox control programme, said on Tuesday it had 53,921 doses of vaccine left for use in prisons - where people are at high risk due to squalid conditions - but it needed over 162,000 doses to launch a vaccination programme in the capital.
        
        So far, the capital, with nearly 20 million inhabitants, has been less affected than regions elsewhere in the country. Vaccination programmes are under way in six other provinces.
        
        France has pledged 100,000 doses, along with other shipments from Germany and the African Union. But it is not known when they are due to arrive, Kacita said.