According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), 39 confirmed cases of monkey pox have been reported in 33 states and the Federal Capital Territory, with zero deaths.
Dr Jide Idris, Director General of the NCDC, revealed the information during a press briefing on Thursday regarding the declaration of monkey pox as a public health emergency of worldwide importance.
He stated that the NCDC is increasing surveillance throughout Nigeria in order to discover and respond to any new cases as quickly as possible.
According to Idris, the NCDC has placed all port health services at five international airports, ten seaports, and 51 land/foot crossing borders on high alert.
He went on to say that various states, including Lagos, Enugu, Kano, Rivers, Cross-River, Akwa-Ibom, Adamawa, Taraba, and the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja, had been placed on high alert.
The World Health Organization (WHO) designated the mpox outbreak in Africa a worldwide public health emergency on Wednesday, citing an increase in cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the spread to neighboring countries.
The WHO convened an expert panel to investigate the outbreak and provide recommendations to the UN health agency’s director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
“Today, the emergency committee met and advised me that in its view, the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. I have accepted that advice,” Tedros told a press conference.
“This is something that should concern us all.
“WHO is committed in the days and weeks ahead to coordinate the global response, working closely with each of the affected countries, and leveraging our on-the-ground presence, to prevent transmission, treat those infected, and save lives.”
The decision comes after the African Union’s health watchdog declared its own public health emergency over the growing outbreak.
Mpox has swept through the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the virus formerly called monkeypox was first discovered in humans in 1970, and spread to other countries.
Tedros said the more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths reported so far this year in DR Congo has already exceeded last year’s total.
