Monkeypox: Africa May Face Another Vaccine Apartheid, Says AHF

Global non-profit organisation, Aids Health Foundation (AHF) has said that Africa may face another vaccine apartheid in the fight against monkeypox as evidenced by the global response to the now endemic disease.

The Foundation noted that the outbreak of Coronavirus exposed glaring flaws in the world’s collective ability to respond to infectious disease outbreaks, saying “We are seemingly back to the old ways. The world may once again lose a chance to control a pandemic.”

AHF Nigeria Country Program Director, Echey Ijezie in a press release on Monday, said this year, there have been dozens of monkeypox cases in Cameroon, Nigeria, and the Central African Republic (CAR), with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) reporting the highest number of infections with over 2,938 cases and 110 deaths.

“The zoonotic viral disease, which is already endemic in 10 countries in West and Central Africa, only drew the world’s attention after affecting people in rich countries in the Global North. Even after the disruption caused by Covid-19, wealthy countries’ self-destructive unwillingness to cooperate for the benefit of the entire global population is evident again.

“African health officials still face the challenge of undercounting due to limited surveillance and testing capacity, which explains the vast discrepancy between confirmed and suspected cases. Additionally, the absence of vaccines for front-line health care workers and laboratory technicians in affected countries puts them in imminent danger.

Ijezie however, noted that wealthy nations still hold stockpiles of smallpox vaccines, which have been used in the UK, US, France, and Canada to protect people who have come in close contact with monkeypox patients, but few lower-income countries have vaccine access.

“There is now a seemingly concerted global response that has seen vaccines distributed in some countries after confirmed cases of the disease in Portugal, Spain, the U.S., and the UK. However, Africa is so far in for another episode of unconscionable vaccine apartheid in its fight against this latest monkeypox outbreak due to vaccine hoarding by wealthy countries.
 
He said another opportunity presents itself for African leaders to amplify their voices in a combined effort to demand that G20 leaders prioritize global vaccine access for all nations, particularly developing countries, when faced with a disease that has the potential to be endemic globally.