Uganda Faces Global Mpox Surge Amid Declining Cases Elsewhere

Uganda has emerged as the global hotspot for Mpox, reporting the highest number of confirmed cases worldwide in the last six weeks.

The country is recording up to 300 new cases per week, highlighting urgent gaps in containment efforts.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 3191 new Mpox cases were confirmed globally in February 2025, marking an 18.2% decline from the previous month.

However, Africa remains the epicenter of the outbreak, accounting for 88% of the new cases.

While countries like Burundi are seeing a steady decline in cases, Uganda’s numbers continue to soar, raising concerns about the effectiveness of current response strategies.

Uganda’s escalating Mpox crisis underscores potential failures in surveillance, healthcare preparedness, and public awareness.

Elsewhere, Burundi continues to show a downward trend, now reporting fewer than 50 new cases per week, down from over 200 at its peak.

Brazil, the Republic of Congo, and Tanzania have reported their first cases of Mpox due to the Clade Ib strain.

Notably, the Republic of Congo has become the first country outside the DRC where both Clade Ia and Clade Ib strains are co-circulating.

As Uganda struggles to contain the outbreak, urgent intervention is needed.

This includes ramping up testing and surveillance, increasing access to vaccines, improving hospital preparedness, and launching targeted public health campaigns.

With the country now at the center of a global health emergency.

Will Uganda’s response shift in time to curb this crisis, or will the country continue to bear the brunt of the global Mpox burden?

By Nile Post.