The World Health Organisation (WHO) said Nigeria has the highest death toll and confirmed cases of monkeypox in Africa.
WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, disclosed this during a virtual press briefing tagged, ‘Road to defeating Meningitis by 2030.’
According to her, Nigeria recorded half of the fatalities linked to the disease, with others reported in Ghana and in the Central African Republic.
“For monkeypox, there have now been 524 confirmed cases and 12 deaths across 11 African countries,” WHO Regional Office for Africa quoted Moeti as saying on its verified Twitter handle.
“The majority of cases are in Nigeria, DRC & Ghana. Of the 12 deaths, six occurred in Nigeria, four in Ghana, and two in the Central African Republic.”
“Although no single monkeypox vaccine has been administered to any high-risk group in any of the African countries reporting cases, WHO has provided 39,000 test kits to countries, enabling improved testing rates,” another tweet read.
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In a monkeypox situation report dated August 14 published by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Nigeria had four deaths linked to the disease.
In the report, it said the four deaths were recorded in four states while 29 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) reported 530 suspected cases of monkeypox in 32 weeks.
“From 1st January to 14th August 2022, Nigeria has recorded 530 suspected cases with 220 confirmed cases (144 male, 76 female) from 29 states – Lagos (35), Ondo (18), Rivers (16), Bayelsa (14), Adamawa (13), Delta (12), Edo (12), FCT (10), Abia (nine), Nasarawa (nine), Anambra (eight), Imo (eight), Ogun (seven), Plateau (six), Taraba (five), Kwara (five), Kano (five), Gombe (four), Cross River (four), Oyo (four), Borno (three), Benue (three), Katsina (three), Kogi (two), Niger (one), Bauchi (one), Akwa Ibom (one), Ebonyi (one) and Osun (one),” the NCDC said.
“Four associated deaths were recorded from four states in 2022 – Delta (one), Lagos (one), Ondo (one), and Akwa Ibom (one).”