ieExplains: What is mpox, where are the outbreaks and what is the WHO doing?

Earlier this year, scientists reported the emergence of a new form of mpox in a Congolese mining town that can kill up to 10% of people and may spread more easily

So far, more than 96% of all cases and deaths from Mpox are in a single country — Congo. File picture: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases via AP)

The World Health Organization declared Wednesday that the increasing spread of mpox in Africa is a global health emergency, warning the virus might ultimately spill across international borders.

The announcement by WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus came after a meeting of the UN health agency’s emergency committee. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declared mpox a public health emergency on the continent on Tuesday.