Nigeria, eight other African countries to receive Mpox vaccine

The Africa CDC said the selection was based on country readiness and epidemiological data.

To control the growing threat of the Mpox virus, the Access and Allocation Mechanism (AAM) for Mpox has allocated 899,000 vaccine doses to Nigeria and eight other African countries with high infection rates.

This was disclosed in a joint statement by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday.

AAM is a framework managed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) which was created to ensure equitable access to vaccines, treatments, and other health resources during public health emergencies, particularly for countries with the greatest need.

According to the Africa CDC, the decision to approve the vaccine allocation was made by the AAM in collaboration with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), WHO and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

The parties approved the allocation of vaccines after receiving the recommendations of an independent Technical Review Committee of the Continental Incident Management Support Team for mpox.

Africa CDC said the selection was based on country readiness and epidemiological data.

“The decision aims to ensure that the limited doses are used effectively and fairly, with the overall objective to control the outbreaks,” the statement reads in part.

In addition to Nigeria, the other hard-hit African countries to receive the vaccine are the Central African Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Congo to receive 85 per cent

As the country with the highest infection rate, 85 per cent of the vaccine doses will be allocated to Congo where the threat of the Clade 1b virus, a new but more dangerous strain of Mpox, is high.

According to WHO, DR Congo reports about 200 to 300 confirmed Mpox cases weekly. So far, Africa has reported about 38,000 suspected Mpox cases, with over 1,000 deaths—most of them occurring in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The surge of the Clade 1b pox strain in the Congo and neighbouring countries prompted the World Health Organization to declare it a public health emergency of international concern in mid-August.

The Africa CDC classified it as a continental public health security emergency.

According to the latest data from the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC), Nigeria has reported 1339 suspected cases from 67 local governments nationwide.

In its statement, the Africa CDC said vaccines are recommended as part of a comprehensive strategy to combat Mpox, alongside timely testing and diagnosis and effective clinical care.

More vaccines expected

The African CDC also disclosed that the AAM is expected to receive 5.85 million vaccine doses alongside the 899,000 doses allocated to the nine countries by the end of the year.

The vaccine rollout will be targeted toward people at high risk of infection, such as confirmed case contacts, healthcare workers, frontline responders, and key at-risk populations in areas with active human-to-human transmission.

The first phase of the vaccination, scheduled through the end of 2024, will target 1.4 million people at risk of infection.

According to the Africa CDC, the initial 2.8 million vaccine doses will be allocated for this effort.

“To protect more people at risk in affected communities, as additional vaccine doses are available. It targets individuals at high risk of severe disease—based on local epidemiology—in affected areas, focusing on regions with the highest incidence of Mpox.

“Special attention will be given to vulnerable populations, including those living with HIV, internally displaced persons, and refugees, due to their increased risk of severe outcomes,” the statement read.