On 14 August 2024, the WHO Director-General determined that the upsurge of mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a growing number of countries in Africa constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) under the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR), the highest level of alarm under the IHR.
Here we describe the latest countries in the region newly reporting cases since the start of the multi-country outbreak in 2022. The clade Ib MPXV outbreak, which began in September 2023 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is having an increasing number of cases in the country and also expanding to neighbouring countries. Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda have each reported their first mpox cases. Several of these cases have travel links to eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and each of these countries has identified clade Ib monkeypox virus (MPXV).
Based on available epidemiological data, this clade has been spreading rapidly among adults through close physical contact, including sexual contact identified within networks of sex workers and their clients. As the virus spreads further, the affected groups are changing, with the virus also taking hold within households and other settings. Additionally, Cote d’Ivoire is reporting cases of clade II mpox for the first time since the start of the multi-country outbreak in 2022.
