Govt on high alert as Mpox spreads across Africa
Story by Abigirl Tembo, Health Editor
THE Government says the country is on high alert to prevent the spread of Mpox formerly Monkey pox following a surge in global cases.
As the global Mpox outbreak continues to spread, over 16,000 cases and more than 500 deaths have been recorded in 75 countries.
Although Zimbabwe has not recorded any cases of Mpox, the Minister of Health and Child Care, Dr Douglas Mombeshora, says the government is not taking any chances, hence taking proactive measures to prevent the virus from entering its borders.
He spoke this Tuesday on the sidelines of the India-Africa Business Conclave in New Delhi, where Zimbabwe is seeking investments in various sectors which include health.
“Monkeypox is a threat to health systems in the region maybe in Africa as a whole. As you know about a week ago the Africa CDC declared Mpox a public health emergency with WHO declaring it a public health emergency.
"There are certain countries that have had Mpox for years. It has been endemic there like the DRC, but we have seen other countries which were not affected by Mpox for years having new cases. What we have been told is that there is a new strain which is a bit more virulent and this has not only affected countries in Africa, but some countries in Europe have also witnessed these new cases of Mpox.
"We as a country of Zimbabwe, of course, are part and parcel of the SADC region, Because movement is not restricted, we can end up seeing these cases escalating, but we are on high alert. We have alerted all our port health posts to be on the lookout, and, we are installing thermal scanners where you just walk through and the body temperature can be picked up and if one‘s temperature is up there is a holding room where they can be interrogated and examined.
"We have trained all our staff. We have kits to do tests for Mpox. We have done test runs to ensure that the kits are working and yes, we are on high alert and we are hoping that we will have any cases of Mpox," said Dr Mombeshora.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the latest MPOX outbreak in Africa a “public health emergency of international concern,” the category used in the past for outbreaks of Ebola and COVID-19.
MPOX, formerly known as Monkey pox, is an infectious disease caused by a virus.
Flu-like symptoms including fever, chills and muscle aches are typically followed by a rash that starts as raised spots, which turn into blisters filled with fluid.
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