By Kemo Cham
The Africa Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has revolved to maintain the Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS), one year since it was first declared.
The continental public health agency said the decision by its Executive Director, Dr Jean Kaseye, is in line with recommendations by its Emergency Consultative Group (ECG), a committee of experts that advises it on technical matters and provides recommendations on public health emergencies of continental concern.
The ECG, which is currently chaired by South African public health expert Professor Salim Abdool Karim, assesses outbreak trends, evaluates the need to declare or maintain emergency status, and advises on strategies like strengthening surveillance, improving resource allocation, and expanding vaccination efforts to control the threat and ensure sustained momentum.
According to Africa CDC, the ECG’s latest assessment revealed that while “significant” progress had been made in combating the ongoing Mpox outbreak, challenges still remain, requiring further actions to ensure a sustainable gain.
“The group’s assessment was based on a comprehensive update on the Mpox situation in Africa, including key epidemiological data, challenges and successes,” Prof. Yap Boom II, deputy head of Africa CDC’s Incident Management Support Team (IMST), said at the agency’s weekly press briefing.
“The decision is based on the continued presence of surges in cases, new introductions in previous affected countries, and persistent challenges in surveillance, testing coverage and vaccine access,” he added.
According to Prof. Yap, the ECG recommended for a proactive, forward looking strategy that includes strengthening of surveillance, improving health investigations, expanding vaccine access and maintaining strong continental coordination.
This is the sixth time the ECG has reviewed the response to the ongoing Mpox epidemic which began in 2022. Latest data show that 32, 256 confirmed cases have been registered in 26 countries, with 758 deaths as at August 28, 2025.
The latest data also show continued decrease in number of suspected cases, while confirmed cases remain stabilized. The data released on Thursday further shows a 68 percent decline in confirmed cases since the peak period.
Africa CDC declared the epidemic as a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security in August 2025, shortly before the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). But WHO on Friday declared an end to its emergency status.
WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a statement cited “sustained declines in cases” the top four high burden countries of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burundi, Sierra Leone and Uganda.
His decision followed a meeting by WHO’s Emergency Committee on Thursday, which reportedly advised that the situation no longer represented an international health emergency.
“I have accepted that advice,” Dr Ghebreyesus noted in a post on the social media platform X.
He however warned that “lifting the emergency declaration does not mean the threat is over, nor that our response will stop.
The ECG’s meeting took place on September 2, coming at the backdrop of resurgence of Mpox cases in some countries, like Liberia and Guinea, and recording of new cases in others, like in Gambia, Senegal and Mozambique. Besides this, concerns cited by the committee of experts for its decision included high case fatalities in some countries, notably Kenya and Sierra Leone.
While Sierra Leone has witnessed progressive reduction in suspected cases, the data shows that confirmed cases have stabilized. But the Africa CDC official says a major concern for the country at present is the high number deaths, most of which is reported to be occurring among people living with HIV/AIDS.
“The most critical challenge that they are facing is the high fatality among people living with HIV, especially those who are not on treatment,” said Prof. Yap.
The ECG is expected to meet in the next few weeks to review the situation.
