Brazzaville (Congo), Oct 26 (IANS): Congo has launched the second phase of vaccination against mpox.

Congo launched the first phase of vaccination in the most affected provinces on October 5, mainly targeting health workers. Since then, 40,574 people out of 45,957 have been vaccinated in the country, with a coverage of 88.3 per cent, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Friday.

According to health authorities, the new phase of vaccination extends to people at high risk of exposure to the virus, including sex workers and people in contact with patients across the country, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Today, we wanted to integrate community engagement into vaccination. As you know, there is sexual transmission (for mpox). That is why we are targeting this category of people to limit the spread within the community," said Aubin Mongili, who is in charge of vaccination in the province of North Kivu.

According to Roger Kamba, the Congolese Health Minister, the country needs about three million doses of vaccine for 2.5 million people.

Since the beginning of 2024, 35,925 suspected cases have been reported in Congo, including 7,534 confirmed ones and 1,006 deaths, according to a report published on Tuesday by the Congolese Health Ministry.

Mpox, also known as monkeypox, is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus, which spreads through close contact.

Symptoms include fever, swollen lymph nodes, sore throat, muscle aches, skin rash, and back pain.

In mid-August, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared the ongoing mpox outbreak in Africa a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security.

Soon after, the WHO also declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern, activating its highest level of global alert for mpox for the second time in two years.