Kenya’s Health Minister Barassa says there are no active cases of Mpox in Kenya

The Ministry of Health announced that there are no active cases of the Mpox virus in the country.

Earlier, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared Mpox a public health emergency

On August 14, the World Health Organization also declared the incident a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

“The Ministry of Health wishes to assure Kenyans that there are no active cases of Mpox disease in the country since the first case detected on July 29, 2024, recovered successfully,” Health Minister Deborah Barasa said in a statement.

Balassa said Kenya has reported only one case of Mpox, who travelled from Kampala, Uganda, to Mombasa and then to Rwanda via the Taita Taveta one-stop border post in Tanzania.

“The individual has now fully recovered and is currently doing well. We have screened 12 persons who had contact with the index case and six other different suspected cases, all of whom have tested negative,” she added.

Barassa said the country has not reported any new confirmed cases of Mpox since the first case was confirmed.

Balassa said The two statements from the mainland and global health agencies were similar, both highlighting the threat posed by the outbreak to public health.

She added that an immediate and coordinated international response was needed to control the disease.

The Ministry of Health said The Ministry of Health continues to take various response measures to prevent new cases from emerging.

These measures include intensifying surveillance activities across the country to detect all suspected cases.

Kenya is set to benefit from a Sh2 billion fund raised by donors to fight the spread of Mpox.

The World Health Organization said it expects to need at least $15 million (about Sh1.9 billion) in emergency funding to support surveillance, preparedness and response activities.

Most of the aid will be provided to African countries that are currently hardest hit by the epidemic.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: “We have released approximately $1.5 million (about Sh193.5 million) from WHO’s emergency contingency fund and plan to release more funds in the coming days. We are also calling on donors to fund the rest of the response plan.”