Mpox Vaccine Access Set to Speed Up as WHO Approves First Jab

AFP/APP

Geneva: The World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Friday that it has for the first time prequalified an mpox vaccine. This development is expected to accelerate access to the vaccine in response to an ongoing epidemic in Africa.

The announcement follows the arrival of the first MVA-BN vaccines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which is the epicenter of the outbreak.

“This first prequalification of a vaccine against mpox is an important step in our fight against the disease, both in the context of the current outbreaks in Africa and in future,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a statement. “We now need urgent scale-up in procurement, donations, and rollout to ensure equitable access to vaccines where they are needed most—to prevent infections, stop transmission, and save lives.”

The WHO’s prequalification listing evaluates the quality, safety, and efficacy of medical products like vaccines. This listing enables the United Nations and other international agencies to procure these products. It also helps lower-income countries without the means to conduct their own evaluations to fast-track procurement approvals.

“The WHO prequalification of the MVA-BN vaccine will help accelerate the ongoing procurement of mpox vaccines by governments and international agencies on the frontlines of the ongoing emergency in Africa and beyond,” said Yukiko Nakatani, WHO’s assistant chief in charge of access to medicines and health products.

Mpox, previously known as monkeypox, is caused by a virus transmitted to humans by infected animals but can also be passed from human to human through close physical contact. It results in fever, muscular aches, and large boil-like skin lesions, and can sometimes be fatal.

The WHO declared an international emergency over mpox last month due to the surge in cases of the new Clade 1b strain in the DRC, which has spread to nearby countries.

Since January, DRC has recorded nearly 22,000 cases and 716 deaths linked to the virus. To date, about 200,000 vaccine doses have been delivered to the DRC by the European Union, along with approximately 50,000 from the United States.