Africa to receive 215 000 mpox vaccines

The European Commission has coordinated the procurement and donation of 215 000 mpox vaccines to Africa.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed these will arrive ‘immediately’ and be distributed to affected countries and regions for adults at risk.

This comes the same week the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the disease outbreak a global emergency.

Hera responds to Africa’s call immediately

The Africa CDC said the European Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (Hera) will procure and donate 175 420 doses of the MVA-BN vaccine, the only FDA and EMA-approved mpox vaccine, as an immediate response to the mpox outbreak in Africa.

In addition, the pharmaceutical company Bavarian Nordic will donate 40 000 doses to Hera. The Africa CDC will distribute the vaccines according to regional needs.

“Preparedness and response to health threats is a global endeavour which we are determined to pursue collectively and with solidarity across borders,” said the European commissioner for health and food safety, Stella Kyriakides.

ALSO READ: Africa CDC declares mpox outbreak as a public health emergency

Furthermore, Hera is working with the Africa CDC with the aim to expand access to mpox diagnostics and sequencing in the region, with a €3.5 million grant foreseen for early autumn.

The organisation has called upon the international community to support its efforts in mobilising two million vaccines.

Africa CDC’s director general, Dr Jean Kaseya said the organisation was grateful for the swift response and called the donation a “crucial step” in the fight against the health crisis.

“This partnership not only delivers essential vaccines but also underscores our collective commitment to safeguarding health across Africa,” he said.

About the vaccine

MVA-BN or Modified Vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic is a non-replicating smallpox vaccine and the only mpox vaccine approved in the EU/EEA and United Kingdom (marketed as IMVANEX), US and Switzerland (marketed as JYNNEOS), and in Canada (marketed as IMVAMUNE). 

MVA-BN has been indicated for use in the general adult population (18 years and older) in individuals considered at risk for smallpox or mpox.

Currently, only two African countries have granted Emergency Use Authorisation for the MVA-BN vaccine (Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo), but WHO last week requested Bavarian Nordic to submit an expression of interest for emergency use listing of the vaccine, which could accelerate its accessibility to African countries where national regulatory approvals are not yet in place.

17 541 cases in Africa

As of 16 August, the Africa CDC said 17 541 Mpox cases, including 517 deaths, were reported in 12 African countries in 2024.

The outbreak has swept through several African countries, particularly the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the virus was first discovered in humans in 1970.

Formerly known as monkeypox, mpox is an infectious disease caused by a virus transmitted to humans by infected animals but can also be passed from human to human through close physical contact.

The disease causes fever, muscular aches and large boil-like skin lesions.

ALSO READ: Africa mpox resurgence fuels alarm