Monkeypox: A “political” crisis that can only be solved by rich countries

Rich countries have hundreds of millions of doses, a Reuters tally of public data, documents and estimates from non-governmental organizations showed. Vaccines which could contribute to combating the outbreak of monkeypox in Africaas the number of vaccine doses provided by donor countries is far less than the number required.

Vaccines are stored for years in countries such as Japan The United States and Canada are anticipating the return of smallpox, a disease that has been eradicated and is related to monkeypox, but is more dangerous.

Some vaccines were used outside Africa in 2022, when an outbreak occurred. monkeypox Globally.

Less than 4 million doses have been pledged out of an estimated 18 to 22 million doses needed to vaccinate 10 million people in the next six months, depending on the type of vaccine, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement.

“It’s not a technical issue, it’s a political issue,” Maria Van Kerkhove, acting director of the WHO’s pandemic preparedness and prevention department, told Reuters.

“Vaccines are useless on the shelves,” she added. “Why not give them to people who need them now?”

About the disease and its vaccine

• The current outbreak began in early 2023 in Congowhich has the most cases, 37,500, and 1,451 deaths.
• The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said the disease has spread to 14 African countries.
• The first campaigns are scheduled to begin. Vaccination In Congo in early October using 265,000 doses provided by donors.
• Health officials are concerned about a new strain known as subtype 1B, which was first detected in Congo and appears to spread more easily through contact.
• Other factors are hampering the response to the monkeypox outbreak, including slow regulatory processes in Global Health Organization In the Congo, rising vaccine prices and other health crises have been exacerbated by the country’s conflict.

Where are the doses?

There are 3 vaccines recommended by the World Health Organization in stockpiles around the world, which are:

1. The Genius vaccine, known as Imvanix or Imvamune outside the United States, is made by Bavarian Nordic.
2. LC-16 vaccine, manufactured by KM Biologics.
3. ACAM2000 vaccine, manufactured by Emergent BioSolutions.

• All of these vaccines are under consideration for purchase and donation in Africa, a spokesperson for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Gavi) said.
• Gavi is a global group that helps low-income countries buy vaccines.
• The group has up to $500 million available to address the spread of monkeypox.
• Many wealthy countries have refused to disclose how much vaccine they have, citing national security reasons.
• KM Biologics declined to comment on its vaccine production volume.
• US officials have declined to disclose how much vaccine is in the country’s stockpile, but two senior officials in the President’s administration Joe Biden They said the stockpiles were sufficient to protect the U.S. population.