By Kemo Cham
The Africa Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has called for intensification of surveillance efforts in Guinea where Mpox cases are rapidly escalating.
Guinea is among countries that have recently realised resurgence or increase in new cases of the viral epidemic which continues to spread to new spots on the continent. Guinea recorded its first Mpox in the ongoing epidemic on September 2024. But it soon put the virus under control, until it recently resurfaced.
According to Africa CDC, epidemiological data for Week 27, as at July 17th, 2025, show that Guinea had recorded 87 confirmed of Mpox. The latest data released on Thursday, July 24th reveals that the cases have increased by 137 percent.
“This is quite escalating,” says Prof. Yap Boum, Deputy Head of Africa CDC’s Incident Management Support Team (IMST). He warned that the situation in Guinea serves as a reminder of how the situation started in Sierra Leone which eventually became one of the top four countries most affected by the epidemic.
“We are seeing cases doubling every week,” Prof. Boum said.
Africa CDC’s latest data revealed continued decline in cases across the continent in the last seven weeks. But this gain is dented by resurgence in some countries and increase in number of news cases in others.
Cameroun, for instance, one of eight countries that had put the virus under control beyond six weeks, slipped back after recording a new case last week. And Gambia became the latest country to record its first ever case in the epidemic, bringing the total number of affected countries since 2024 to 28, with 168, 856 suspected cases and 47,297 confirmed cases.
Africa CDC officials say the focus now is to break the chain of transmission in the countries actively transmitting, including Togo, Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya.
But according to Prof. Yap, Guinea remains of particular concern for the agency, especially in light of shortage of vaccine at the global level. With 208 confirmed cases, Guinea contributed 20 percent of the total confirmed cases of the continent during the week under review.
The concentration of cases in the country also expanded from two to three regions: Conakry, Faranah and Kindia.
Prpf. Yap cited contact tracing and isolation of patients as the two main challenges the country needs to improve on.
