The Democratic Republic of Congo anticipates the initial shipment of mpox vaccine doses to arrive on Thursday

The Democratic Republic of the Congo, the epicenter of the mpox outbreak that led to the United Nations declaring a worldwide public health emergency, announced that it anticipates receiving two deliveries of vaccine doses: one on Thursday and the other on Saturday.

The World Health Organization issued the health emergency declaration last month, but there aren’t enough immunizations to stop the disease’s spread.

Head of Congo’s mpox outbreak response leader Cris Kacita told Reuters in a WhatsApp message on Wednesday, “We’ll receive the first batch on Sept. 5 and a second one on Sept. 7,” without providing any other information about the quantity of doses or the supplier.

Later in the day, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of WHO, announced that the dosages were scheduled to arrive in Congo during a press conference in Geneva. The European Union donates them, and Bavarian Nordic makes them.

The arrival of the vaccine doses should aid in redressing a significant injustice that has prevented African nations from obtaining the two vaccinations utilized in a global mpox outbreak in 2022, despite their widespread availability in Europe and the US.

Tens of thousands of doses of a vaccine produced by Bavarian Nordic have been promised by Washington and Brussels.

Approximately 200,000 doses will arrive in the first tranche, according to Thabani Maphosa, head of country delivery for the international vaccination alliance Gavi, who spoke with Reuters on Wednesday.

Congo wanted to begin the first vaccination round on October 8, but Kacita had stated on Monday that this would rely on the country obtaining vaccines this week.

Launching the crucial effort throughout a vast equatorial country the size of western Europe is a formidable challenge for health authorities. The doses need to be maintained at -90°C (-130°F), and communities may want to reconsider taking part.

“The vaccine will not be distributed as soon as it is received,” Kacita stated while describing why the campaign wouldn’t start for about a month after delivery.

KEY COMMUNICATION

He added that the six provinces that were targeted have the ability to preserve the doses at the proper temperature. “We need to communicate so that the population accepts the vaccination,” he said.

Maria Van Kerkhove, the acting director of epidemic and pandemic prevention for the WHO, stated that while the organization backed Congo’s response, this was its main area of attention.

“We need to examine the communication regarding who will receive the vaccines initially,” she stated, cautioning that misinformation around the shots was “quite widespread.”

Since there is currently a shortage of doses, she stated that initially, vaccinations will only be given to contacts of confirmed cases.

Although mpox poses a serious risk to children, Bavarian Nordic’s vaccine is not approved for use in minors. Van Kerkhove did, however, note that the WHO advises using it in kid epidemics where the advantages outweigh the hazards; this is presently being discussed in the Congo.

Mumps can be fatal and usually presents with flu-like symptoms and pus-filled sores. The health ministry reports that in the first eight months of this year, 19,710 suspected instances of mpox were documented in Congo. Of those, 655 were fatal and 5,041 were confirmed.

Close touch, especially sexual interaction, is how it spreads.

“Rural areas see the highest rate of human fatalities. These are isolated locations with no assistance,” a doctor employed by Congo’s response said, requesting anonymity due to regulations prohibiting media interviews.

The physician voiced concern that while vaccinations around verified positive cases would be necessary for the campaign to be effective, many suspected case areas lacked access to electricity and clean water.

Van Kerkhove of the WHO reported that testing have run out in some parts of the Congo and requested further funding to bolster the response in that country as well as in neighboring Burundi, where the novel clade Ib strain of mpox has recently become more prevalent.