WHO invites bids to manufacture Mpox jab
By George Kebaso, August 12, 2024The World Health Organisation (WHO) has invited vaccine manufacturers to submit an Expression of Interest for Emergency Use Listing (EUL) of Mpox doses as the Ministry of Health continues to monitor the situation.
This follows a recent confirmation of one case in the country.
The WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on August 7 that he had triggered the process for EUL of Mpox vaccines given the worrying trends in the disease’s spread.
Last week there were reports in a local daily that two more cases of Mpox had been detected in Mombasa and Kilifi, however, so far the government is yet to confirm this.
According to the WHO, there is a serious and growing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that has now expanded outside the country.
“A new viral strain, which first emerged in September 2023, has for the first time been detected outside DRC,” said the WHO in its online news site.
The case in Kenya, detected at the Taita Taveta border section with Tanzania on July 31 has since been discharged from hospital with the authorities keeping close monitoring.