The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the monkeypox outbreak an “emergency of international concern” as it has spread around the world rapidly.
Presently, more than 16,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported from around 75 countries, resulting in five deaths.
State authorities are urged to create awareness among health and care workers, as well as the masses, about preventive measures. In addition, they are urged to take considerable protective measures in suspected cases, including protecting vulnerable groups.
The Director-General of WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, made the decision of declaration even though there was a lack of consensus in the emergency committee of the UN health agency. This is the first time the Director-General of the UN health agency has taken such a decision.
“We have an outbreak that has spread around the world rapidly through new modes of transmission about which we understand too little and which meets the criteria in the international health regulations,” the Director-General of WHO said on Saturday.
“There is also a clear risk of further international spread, although the risk of interference with international traffic remains low for the moment,” he added.
In addition, in the press conference on Saturday, the Director-General clarified that the Emergency Committee under the International Health Regulations, which was convened last Thursday, had failed to reach a consensus about monkeypox.
Furthermore, Dr. Michael Ryan, emergency chief at the WHO, explains that the decision made by the WHO chief is to ensure that the global community takes the current outbreak situation seriously.