Korede Abdullah in Lagos
Sierra Leone has launched a nationwide mpox vaccination campaign in response to a sharp rise in cases since January.
According to the Head of the Mpox Incident Support Team at Africa CDC, Dr. Ngashi Ngongo, while speaking with press men on Thursday, the country is now the seventh in Africa to roll out immunization efforts against the virus.
The government has secured 58,300 vaccine doses, with priority groups including healthcare workers, close contacts of confirmed cases, sex workers, and other frontline workers.
The vaccination drive will primarily target the Western Area Urban and Western Area Rural districts, where the outbreak has been most severe.
The outbreak continues to escalate across Africa, with Uganda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) reporting the highest number of cases over the past week.
The Central African Republic (CAR) also confirmed a new case after six weeks of no reported infections. However, there is a silver lining—Africa CDC noted a slight decline in the mpox case-fatality rate, from 1.8% to 1.5%, attributing this to improved healthcare access and better case management.
Despite these efforts, experts remain concerned about the virus’s rapid transmission, especially in densely populated areas.
Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, has emerged as a hotspot, with most infections reported among young adults, students, and business professionals.
The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that high mobility, frequent social interactions, and closed environments, such as schools, are accelerating the virus’s spread.
The dominant strain in the outbreak has been identified as the global clade 2 strain. So far, 113 confirmed cases and two fatalities have been reported in Sierra Leone, with underlying health conditions playing a role in both deaths.
Health officials hope the vaccination campaign will curb the spread and protect vulnerable populations.
