Democratic Republic of Congo begins mpox vaccinations after emergency declared

Mpox has been declared a global emergency (Moses Sawasawa/AP)

Authorities in Democratic Republic of the Congo on Saturday began vaccinating against mpox, nearly two months after the disease outbreak that spread to several African countries and beyond was declared a global emergency by the World Health Organisation.

The 265,000 doses donated to by the European Union and the US were rolled out in the eastern city of Goma in North Kivu province, where hospitals and health workers have been overstretched, struggling to contain the new and possibly more infectious strain of mpox.