WHO issues a global epidemic alert! Monkeypox cases surge in Africa

It is reported that on August 15, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tan Desai held a press conference to announce that the rapidly spreading monkeypox variant outbreak in Africa has constituted a "public health emergency of international concern", which is also the highest-level global epidemic alert under the framework of the International Health regulations.

The Director General of the WHO said that the Democratic Republic of the Congo had been reporting monkeypox cases for the past decade and that the number of monkeypox cases had increased steadily, while the number of monkeypox cases reported in the country had increased significantly since last year. The number of cases reported so far this year has exceeded last year's total, with more than 14000 cases of infection and 524 deaths.

In addition, new monkeypox variants have emerged in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and spread rapidly. At the same time, in neighbouring countries of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, no cases of monkeypox have been reported in the past, and this variant has also been reported, confirming the possibility of further transmission of the virus in Africa and other parts of the world. And called on African countries to take urgent action to prevent the continued spread of monkeypox on the African continent.

At present, according to data provided by African Disease Control and Prevention, more than 17500 presumed and confirmed cases of monkeypox have been reported in 16 countries and regions in Africa, with most cases and deaths occurring in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The number of monkeypox cases reported in Africa this year has increased by 160% compared with 2023.

It is understood that after the first case of human infection with monkeypox virus was found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970, the virus was mainly prevalent in western and central Africa, and the virus spread from person to person, as well as through infected animals and contaminated objects. However, in May 2022, more than 100 countries and regions around the world reported monkeypox cases. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the monkeypox epidemic as a "public health emergency of international concern" in July 2022, which was not lifted until May 2023.

However, with the continuous spread and development of the virus, monkeypox has evolved into two genetic branches, of which the branch with the latest round of monkeypox has a higher fatality rate. The monkeypox outbreak in 2022 affected nearly 100000 people worldwide and caused nearly 200 deaths. The latest monkeypox outbreak is even more deadly. More than 500 deaths have now been reported. The mortality rate of this variant is close to 3%, which is about 15 times that of the 2022 epidemic. Among them, women and children under the age of 15 have a higher risk of death.

Although the current monkeypox epidemic is mainly in Central and West Africa, it has spread to some East African countries, such as Kenya and reported cases of monkeypox. East Africa is an important city of coffee industry in Africa, and the current monkeypox epidemic will seriously affect the development of coffee industry.

Most of the coffee-producing countries in East Africa are mainly small farmers. Coffee is grown around houses. If infected with monkeypox, it will last for 6 to 13 days according to the onset period of the virus. In these days, coffee plants will be left uncared for, resulting in a decline in coffee production and quality.

In addition, African coffee has attracted many coffee traders and bean hunters, but due to the monkeypox outbreak, there may be potential dangers, cross-border trade may be blocked, and local coffee processing plants may face problems such as labor shortage and disruption of supply chain, seriously hindering the development of coffee industry in Africa.