The East African Community (EAC) has deployed its Rapidly Deployable Expert (RPE) Pool to help combat the ongoing Mpox virus outbreak in the region.
- EAC Partner States such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Republic of Burundi are particularly affected, with the DRC reporting over 7,000 confirmed cases by October 2024, around 40% of them children under 15.
- The EAC Secretariat is deploying skilled regional emergency experts through three joint deployments with the German Epidemic Preparedness Team (SEEG) over the next six months.
- In Uganda, the United States (US) handed over 5,000more test kits and consumables to support the efforts against the growing epidemic.
“These outbreaks pose substantial challenges to our health systems and affect our economies and livelihoods more broadly,” EAC Secretary General Veronica Nduva said.
In August, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has declared the ongoing Mpox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS), the first such declaration by the agency since its inception in 2017. At least 13 African countries, including previously unaffected nations like Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda, have reported Mpox outbreaks.
“The EAC Expert Pool does not operate in isolation. Through our long-term collaboration with the Africa CDC, WHO, the German government, to name a few, we aim to create synergies that can enhance our collective efforts. We know that every outbreak requires a coordinated response,” she added.
Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Uganda announced that Washington will spend $4mn to support “enhanced surveillance, risk communication, coordination and contact tracing.”
“It is not enough to have skilled personnel; it is important to empower them with the tools to work—the test kits/consumables that we are handing over today are part of our deliberate effort to help have as complete, timely and effective response as possible,” U.S. Ambassador to Uganda William W. Popp said.
