Rwanda starts administering Mpox jabs

Rwanda has rolled out an Mpox vaccination campaign as the continent struggles to access enough jabs.

Rwanda has started with a batch of 1000 doses obtained from Nigeria under an agreement between the two countries, AP reported.

Rwanda is neighboring eastern DRC where the epicenter of Mpox is located.

The Mpox outbreak was declared a global health emergency with DRC suffering 700 deaths this year and 22,000 cases.

It is estimated that 10 million vaccines are needed to meet demand, but the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which accounts for most cases, only received 100,000 vaccines earlier this month.

Gavi, a global vaccine alliance, said it signed a deal with Bavarian Nordic to acquire 500,000 Mpox jabs to be sent to Africa urgently.