Mpox has now been declared a global health emergency. 

This means that there will be increased scrutiny among travellers from African States affected by the disease including Kenya as well as more joint efforts to stem the spread of the disease. 

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday declared the deadly Mpox disease a global emergency. 

This comes after earlier this week, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the mpox outbreaks were a public health emergency, with more than 500 deaths, and called for international help to stop the virus’ spread.

“This is something that should concern us all ... The potential for further spread beyond Africa and beyond is very worrying,” said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

While just one case has been reported in Kenya, the highly contagious disease, characterised by flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions, has spread beyond Congo's borders, affecting countries such as Burundi, the Central African Republic (CAR), and Rwanda. 

Africa CDC head Jean Kaseya delivered a stern warning that the continent faces a critical moment. "This declaration is not merely a formality. It is a clarion call to action," Kaseya stated. 

"We can no longer afford to be reactive. We must be proactive and aggressive in our efforts to contain and eliminate this threat.”

The public health emergency declaration is expected to galvanise government efforts across the continent, enabling better coordination in response strategies and potentially unlocking a crucial influx of medical supplies and humanitarian aid to the hardest-hit regions.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that officials were facing several outbreaks of mpox outbreaks in various countries with “different modes of transmission and different levels of risk.

The U.N. health agency asserted that mpox was recently identified for the first time in four East African countries: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda. 

All of those outbreaks are linked to the one in Congo. In the Ivory Coast and South Africa, health authorities have reported outbreaks of a different and less dangerous version of mpox that spread worldwide in 2022.