Infections among healthcare workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo dropped by 50 percent since November 2024. Healthcare workers had been among the largest transmission sources in a health system struggling with severe staff shortages. The halving of their infection rate is one of the clearest measures of effective coordinated crisis response, which mobilized more than 1.1 billion dollars, deployed five million vaccine doses, and reduced weekly case numbers in Congo from roughly 590 to about 60.
From local outbreak to continental crisis
The mpox epidemic, escalating since 2022, peaked in 2024. In the Democratic Republic of Congo alone, the outbreak's epicenter, more than 14,000 suspected cases were reported between January and August 2024 across 23 of 26 provinces. The New England Journal of Medicine documented a crucial epidemiological shift: Unlike the 2022 global outbreak, which predominantly affected men in Europe and North America via the milder Clade II strain, Africa's dominant Clade I spreads primarily through household contact and in health facilities, making it harder to contain.
In August 2024, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern once again. Africa CDC called a continental emergency. Member states agreed on a joint response of unprecedented scale for African health emergencies.
What coordinated response achieved
The emergency declarations triggered unprecedented resource mobilization. According to Africa CDC and WHO, more than 1.1 billion US dollars were mobilized for the response. Over five million vaccine doses were deployed across 33 African countries, coordinated through WHO, Africa CDC, CEPI, Gavi, and UNICEF.
One largely overlooked outcome: vaccine acceptance in targeted intervention areas rose from 44 to 87 percent through intensive outreach and community engagement. Improved safety measures in health facilities showed rapid results. Healthcare worker infections dropped 50 percent since November 2024 according to WHO. These workers had represented one of the largest transmission sources.
On September 5, 2025, Tedros declared the international health emergency ended. WHO cited sustained declines in the hardest-hit countries: DRC, Burundi, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. The latest WHO situation report (number 65, April 30, 2026) shows the numbers: In the preceding six weeks, DRC reported 367 confirmed Clade I cases, Madagascar 332, Guinea 104, Liberia 96, and Ghana 50. On a weekly basis, Congo saw a roughly 90 percent decline from 2024 peak levels.
Two earlier outbreaks as benchmark
The 2022 global mpox outbreak affected 111 countries and roughly 87,000 people, mostly in Europe and North America. WHO declared it a public health emergency on July 23, 2022. Vaccination campaigns and targeted public information showed quick results. Nearly ten months later, on May 11, 2023, the emergency was lifted. A total of 140 deaths were recorded, comparatively low given global spread. The crucial difference from Africa's crisis: The 2022 outbreak struck countries with strong health infrastructure and straightforward vaccine access.
The 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa unfolded differently. It killed roughly 11,325 people over more than two years because the international response initially arrived too late and fragmented. Only when resources mobilized at scale and local health systems received support did the curve reverse. WHO declared the outbreak over in June 2016.
Africa's mpox crisis of 2023-2026 falls between both scenarios: more severe than the 2022 global outbreak, yet with far more coordinated response than the 2014 Ebola emergency.
New hotspots and persistent financing gaps
Despite progress, Africa CDC maintains continental emergency status. The WHO situation report shows why: Liberia, Ghana, and Guinea report rising case numbers and have become new hotspots. Particularly concerning is the confirmation of Clade Ib cases with no apparent travel links to Africa in six countries including Italy, the Netherlands, and the USA.
Scientists warn in Nature Communications of a structural risk: without a global mpox vaccine stockpile financed through sustainable and transparent mechanisms, supply to re-emerging hotspots risks failure. The Lancet Global Health documents how funding cuts and delayed international responses enable new epicenters.
The gains so far are real and measurable. Whether the decline holds depends in coming months on where new hotspots emerge: in countries with weaker health infrastructure and limited vaccine access.