The International Organization for Migration (IOM) today called for international aid of 18.5 million dollars (16.6 million euros) for ‘crucial and urgent’ services for migrants and populations in Africa at risk of infection with mpox.
In a statement released today, IOM warns of the situation of migrants, internally displaced people, "highly mobile populations in the region", who tend to be at much greater risk of infection by the disease, due to their living conditions and their mobile and transient lifestyles, which can "greatly limit their access to health and medical care".
The aid requested is to comply with a response plan drawn up by the organization that aims to reduce the risk of exposure to the disease for these vulnerable groups.
"The US$18.5 million required will be used to strengthen the capacity to respond to the needs of migrants, internally displaced people and host communities, supporting infection treatment, prevention and control measures, particularly at the borders", highlights IOM in the note.
Vulnerable populations, such as migrants and internally displaced people who are affected by or at risk of being affected by mpox, “must receive the necessary health care and protection, especially in regions where access to such services is limited and where there are high numbers of migrants and displaced populations,” the organization argues.
The funding will also make it possible to “strengthen the capacities of national health workers and frontline teams, as well as identify high-risk areas, in order to ensure effective control of the disease and reduce its spread across borders,” it stresses.
The spread of mpox in East Africa, the Horn of Africa and Southern Africa is “a serious concern, especially for vulnerable migrants, highly mobile populations and displaced communities, who are often neglected in these crises,” IOM Director-General Amy Pope said in a statement released from Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.
Therefore, "we must act quickly to protect those most at risk and to mitigate the impact of this outbreak in the region," he added.
Mpox has been affecting people in the region for more than a decade. But the rapid spread of the new strain of the disease led the World Health Organization to declare Mpox a public health emergency of international concern on August 14, the IOM recalls.
The organization highlights that so far, in the Democratic Republic of Congo alone there are more than 15,000 suspected cases, including 537 deaths, according to the World Health Organization, and cases have been confirmed in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.
The WHO has declared the Mpox outbreak in Africa a global health emergency, with confirmed cases among children and adults in more than a dozen countries and a new variant in circulation.
This is the second time in two years that the infectious disease has been considered a potential threat to international health, with the first alert having been raised in May last year, after the oropropagation had been contained and the situation was considered under control.
The disease is transmitted from animals to humans and contagion then occurs through close contact with infected individuals or animals through blood, body fluids or injuries. The WHO also admits the possibility that someone in the acute phase of the infection, and especially if they have blisters in their mouth, can transmit the virus through exhaled droplets.
Symptoms include fever, rash, headache, sore throat, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes and back pain.
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