The World Health Organization (WHO) has prequalified an Mpox vaccine for the first time, marking a significant milestone in the global fight against the disease. The announcement comes as the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the epicenter of the epidemic, receives its first batch of MVA-BN vaccines.
Since January, the DRC has reported nearly 22,000 Mpox cases and 716 deaths linked to the virus. To aid the country’s response, around 200,000 vaccine doses have been delivered by the European Union, along with an additional 50,000 from the United States.
Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is a viral disease transmitted to humans by infected animals, but it can also spread through close human contact. Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, and large boil-like skin lesions, and in some cases, the disease can be fatal.
In a statement on its social media platform X on Friday, WHO said the prequalification is expected to accelerate access to vaccines, particularly in Africa where the epidemic has been most severe.
“This first prequalification of a vaccine against Mpox is an important step in our fight against the disease, both in the context of the current outbreaks in Africa, and in future,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
“We now need an urgent scale-up in procurement, donations, and rollout to ensure equitable access to vaccines where they are needed most… to prevent infections, stop transmission, and save lives.”
WHO’s prequalification process evaluates the quality, safety, and efficacy of medical products, making them eligible for procurement by the United Nations and other international organizations. It also streamlines vaccine approval for lower-income countries that may lack the resources to conduct their own assessments.
Yukiko Nakatani, WHO’s assistant chief for access to medicines and health products, added: “The prequalification of the MVA-BN vaccine will help accelerate ongoing procurement of the Mpox vaccines by governments and international agencies… on the frontlines of the ongoing emergency in Africa and beyond.”
The WHO declared an international emergency over Mpox last month due to a surge in cases of the Clade 1b strain in the DRC, which has since spread to neighboring countries.
