Biden promises 1m Mpox vaccine, $500m to African countries

United States President Joe Biden has donated one million mpox vaccine doses and a minimum of $500 million to African countries to assist in tackling the outbreak.

Biden made the pledge at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The President, who called on other nations to emulate his actions, added, “We must now move quickly to tackle mpox."

Mpox (monkeypox) is a viral disease primarily transmitted to humans through contact with infected animals.

Human-to-human transmission is also possible through close physical contact. The illness manifests with symptoms including fever, muscle aches, and large boil-like skin lesions, which can be fatal in some cases.

Between January and September 8, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported a total of 25,093 suspected mpox cases and 723 deaths across the African continent.