WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus has declared the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
Ghebreyesus made a corresponding statement at a briefing on July 23.
Statement by the head of WHO
Ghebreyesus said the monkeypox outbreak has spread rapidly around the world through new modes of transmission that are too little understood and meets the criteria of international health regulations.
Therefore, according to the head of WHO, it was decided to declare the outbreak of monkeypox a public health emergency of international importance.
Previously, the emergency committee of the organizations was unable to reach a consensus on this issue.
According to the WHO director general, more than 16,000 cases of monkeypox infection have already been registered in 75 countries and territories and 5 deaths.
Ghebreyesus clarified that the risk of the spread of infection is moderate on a global scale and in all regions except Europe, where the risk is assessed as high.
According to him, there is a clear risk of further international spread of the virus, but the likelihood that the outbreak will cause obstacles to international travel is still low.
The head of WHO believes that the global community has all the tools to bring the monkeypox outbreak under control and stop transmission of the virus.
According to WHO, about half of the countries where cases of monkeypox have been reported have already received access to vaccines.
