The World Health Organization on Wednesday, August 14 declared the ongoing mpox outbreak in Africa a global health emergency.
The UN health body convened its emergency mpox committee amid concerns that a deadlier strain of the virus, clade Ib, had reached four previously unaffected areas in Africa. This strain had previously been contained to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
After meeting with independent experts, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that he had declared a public health emergency of international concern, the highest level of alarm under international health law.
Also known as PHEIC, this is a status given by WHO to “extraordinary events” that pose a public health risk to other countries through the international spread of disease. These outbreaks may require a coordinated international response, according to the organization.
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