“The mistakes we saw during the COVID-19 pandemic are already being repeated," said Dr. Boghuma Kabisen Titanji, an assistant professor of medicine at Emory University as reported by the news agency AP.
Since May this year, over 21,000 monkeypox cases have been reported in nearly 80 countries, with about 75 suspected deaths in Africa. On Friday, Brazil and Spain reported deaths linked to monkeypox.
“The African countries dealing with monkeypox outbreaks for decades have been relegated to a footnote in conversations about the global response," Titanji said.
Monkeypox vaccination: ‘Again being left behind’, says Africa
Monkeypox doesn't spread as fast as COVID, but the disease spilling over into general populations, outside Africa, might require vaccination to be intensified. Experts, however, pointed out that mass vaccination against monkeypox won't be necessary. They think targeted use of the available doses, along with other measures, could shut down the expanding epidemics recently designated by the World Health Organization as a global emergency.
Amid the crisis, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday called for the continent to be prioritized for vaccines, saying it was again being left behind. “If we're not safe, the rest of the world is not safe," said Africa CDC's acting director, Ahmed Ogwell.
WHO is developing a vaccine-sharing mechanism for affected countries, but has released few details about how it might work. It has made no guarantees about prioritizing poor countries in Africa, saying only that vaccines would be dispensed based on epidemiological need.
Some experts worry the mechanism could duplicate the problems seen with COVAX, created by WHO and partners in 2020 to try to ensure poorer countries would get COVID-19 shots. That missed repeated targets to share vaccines with poorer nations and at times relied on donations.
“Just asking countries to share is not going to be enough," said Sharmila Shetty, a vaccines adviser for Medecins Sans Frontieres. “The longer monkeypox circulates, the greater chances it could get into new animal reservoirs or spread to" the human general population, she said. “If that happens, vaccine needs could change substantially."
At the moment, there is only one producer of the most advanced monkeypox vaccine: the Danish company Bavarian Nordic. Its production capacity this year is about 30 million doses, with about 16 million vaccines available now.
(With inputs from agencies)
