U.S COMMITTEE FOR REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS
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Mpox Outbreak: How International Indifference Is Threatening Refugees

September 24, 2024

THE PROBLEM

A new viral outbreak threatens the health and safety of 42 million forcibly displaced people in Africa. A new strain of mpox, a virus that caused a worldwide outbreak in 2022, currently threatens refugee and displaced populations in Africa, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is at the epicenter.

In the DRC alone, there are over 520,000 refugees and asylum seekers and over six million internally displaced people. Seventy-two percent of displaced people live in camps or settlements, which are often overcrowded and underfunded. Most refugees reside near the eastern border of the DRC, where increasing armed conflict blocks the flow of humanitarian and medical aid.

The humanitarian crisis in the DRC is one of the most urgent in the world, even without mpox. Internal conflicts, flooding, and other viral epidemics have led to chronic underfunding for people in need of emergency health services.

The mpox outbreak threatens to strain the fragile healthcare system even more. In 2024, there have been 29,342 suspected cases and 812 deaths in Africa. The mortality rate is between one and 10 percent. Children make up the majority of fatalities. People living with AIDS and HIV, pregnant women, and other immunocompromised people are at risk of developing severe symptoms and dying of complications.

On August 14, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that mpox is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), prompting the need for an international response. As of August 2024, mpox was reported in 48 countries worldwide.

Countries on the African continent are now scrambling to prevent the spread. Vaccines against mpox are available, but only 250,000 doses were delivered to the DRC. As of mid-September, no one in the DRC has been vaccinated through the public health system.

Refugee and displaced populations do not have enough resources to prevent the spread of mpox. On September 11, UNHCR launched an emergency appeal for $21.4 million to respond to the outbreak in refugee populations. UNHCR reported at least 88 cases among refugees in Africa. The DRC has the highest number of cases in refugees at 68 cases.

Without international assistance and coordination, refugee and displaced populations in Africa will struggle to prevent the spread of mpox. Yet, WHO, high-income countries, and vaccine manufacturers are slow to support the large campaign necessary to ensure the public health of refugee and displaced populations on the African continent.

 

Click here to read the full brief.

 

USCRI, founded in 1911, is a non-governmental, not-for-profit international organization committed to working on behalf of refugees and immigrants and their transition to a dignified life.

For inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

 

 


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