HQ Team
June 10, 2025: Mpox cases continue to surge and meet the criteria of a public health emergency of international concern, the World Health Organization stated.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus’s announcement follows the fourth meeting of the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee on the upsurge of mpox held on June 5, 2025.
Tedros said since the beginning of 2024, more than 37,000 confirmed mpox cases have been reported to the WHO from 25 countries, including 125 deaths.
The Democratic Republic of Congo accounts for 60% of confirmed cases and 40% of deaths, followed by Uganda, Burundi and Sierra Leone, which have been experiencing a surge in cases since the beginning of this year.
New countries
In addition to confirmed cases, Congo continues to report between 2000 and 3000 suspected cases each week. Since February, seven additional countries have reported outbreaks for the first time: Albania, Ethiopia, Malawi, North Macedonia, South Sudan, the United Republic of Tanzania and Togo.
The panel, recognising progress in the capacity to respond in certain countries, advised the Director-General that the event continues to constitute a PHEIC, based on the continuing rise in the number of cases, including a recent increase in West Africa.
It further based its recommendations on the likely ongoing undetected transmission in some countries beyond the African continent.
“Ongoing operational challenges in responding to the event, including concerns about surveillance and diagnostics, as well as a lack of funding, make prioritising response interventions challenging and require continued international support,” according to a WHO statement.
Full report in a week
Tedros concurred with the Committee’s advice and issued the Committee’s revised temporary recommendations to Member States experiencing mpox outbreaks. The recommendations guide countries’ efforts to prevent and control the spread of the disease.
The full report of the fourth meeting will be issued next week.
The upsurge of mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its spread to neighbouring countries was first declared a public health emergency of international concern by the Director-General on 14 August 2024.
Since then, the Emergency Committee has met on three additional occasions, each time advising the Director-General that the event continues to constitute a PHEIC.
Viral disease
Mpox (previously known as monkeypox) is a viral disease caused by an orthopoxvirus called monkeypox virus. It spreads mainly through close contact with someone who has mpox, causing a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes and fever. It can make people very sick and leave scars.
The disease mainly spreads from person to person through close contact. This includes, but isn’t limited to, sexual contact. Transmission occurs through exposure to bodily fluids; lesions on the skin or on internal mucosal surfaces, such as in the mouth or throat; respiratory particles; and contaminated objects.
