Weekly Bulletin on Outbreaks and other Emergencies: Week 3: 9 to 15 January 2023

This Weekly Bulletin focuses on public health emergencies occurring in the WHO African region. This week’s articles cover:

Cholera in Kenya

COVID-19 across the WHO African region

Monkey pox in the WHO African Region

For each of these events, a brief description, followed by public health measures implemented and an interpretation of the situation is provided.

A table is provided at the end of the bulletin with information on all new and ongoing public health events currently being monitored in the region, as well as recent events that have been controlled and closed.

Major issues and challenges include:

In 2022, Kenya experienced two cholera outbreak waves with the first one occurring from May through June and affected three counties; Nairobi, Kisumu and Kiambu. The ongoing wave was confirmed on 8 October and has affected fourteen counties. Even when outbreak related activities are underway, the surveillance system is challenged with inadequate resources for surveillance activities including active case finding and reporting as well as weak community-based surveillance. The affected areas are also experiencing other challenges to public health like severe acute malnutrition and overcrowded refugee camps, the ongoing cholera is therefore affecting an already fragile population with an increased risk of higher mortality.

No new cases of Mpox have been reported in Africa during the past two weeks of 2023. Mpox cases have decreased in the continent since the last quarter of 2022. Efforts are ongoing to characterize and determine Mpox modes of transmission across Africa.

Source: World Health Organization