Germany on Monday announced that it would donate 100,000 doses of mpox vaccine to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other African nations in hopes of getting an outbreak of the disease under control.

The gift will all but wipe out the German military's reserve of roughly 118,000 doses.

Berlin will also lend financial support to its effort, providing funding to the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as supporting partners in Africa through the Gavi Vaccine Alliance.

Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said Berlin's aim is, "to support in solidarity the international efforts to contain mpox on the African continent." 

Hebestreit, noting that these were immediate-term measures, added that Berlin would also work alongside the African Union (AU) to foster local vaccine production.

New mpox strain is deadlier, more transmissible

The World Health Organization (WHO) this month declared a recent mpox outbreak in the DRC a global public health emergency when cases began showing up outside the country.

The WHO claims the disease "can be stopped" but notes that this will require a comprehensive and expensive global effort.

France last week announced that it would donate 100,000 doses and the US, too, will donate 50,000.

Mpox, previously known as monkeypox, has been around for decades, yet a new, more virulent strain is thought to be behind its recent spread.

Deadly and communicable, the Clade 1b strain has killed more than 570 people this year. The disease has spread across the DRC, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. The first European fatality was registered in Sweden.

The mpox virus can spread from animals to humans but also between humans through close physical contact, most often through kissing or sexual contact.

js/wd (AFP, Reuters)