The World Health Organization (WHO) revealed on Saturday that it has removed the distinction between endemic and non-endemic countries in its data on monkeypox to merge the response to the virus (monkeypox).
BizWatch reports that not until the past few months, monkeypox had generally been confined to Western and Central Africa but is now present in several continents.
“We are removing the distinction between endemic and non-endemic countries, reporting on countries together where possible, to reflect the unified response that is needed,” the WHO said in its outbreak situation update dated June 17 but sent to media on Saturday.
In 2022, January 1 and June 15, 2,103 confirmed cases, a probable case and one death have been reported to the WHO in 42 countries, it said.
Emergency meeting
WHO is due on June 23, 2022 to hold an emergency meeting to determine whether to classify the global monkeypox outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern.
The designation is the highest alarm the UN agency can sound.
