Mpox remains global public health emergency: WHO

China

Mpox remains global public health emergency: WHO

2024-11-24 18:16 Last Updated At：20:27

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), one of the epicenters of the mpox outbreak, is continuing to carry out measures to stop the disease from spreading further as cases in the country surpass 40,000 with a death toll of more than 1,000.

Nineteen African countries have recorded mpox cases since the start of the year. Canada has also confirmed the first case of Clade I mpox. Its public health agency said the case was linked to travel associated with the ongoing outbreak in central and eastern Africa.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday declared that the mpox remains a public health emergency, a determination based on the rising number of cases, operational challenges and the need to mount a joint response to end the outbreak.

"What really concerns us in the DRC is that the virus is still circulating. The issue of lifting or maintaining the international public health emergency on mpox will not affect the system that the DRC has set in place to tackle the outbreak. We will continue with the efforts we are making to prevent it from spreading across borders," said Augustin Kayembe, a general medical practitioner.

Earlier this year, health experts detected a new strain of the virus in eastern DRC that is more infectious than the one that was reported globally in 2022.

The strain known as Clade 1b spread to the DRC's neighboring countries prompting the WHO to declare mpox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in August. The declaration is meant to enable the global health body to rapidly mobilize funds, coordinate the response and accelerate the development of vaccines for emergency use.

Authorities said over 50,000 people have been vaccinated in areas with the highest number of cases. The government plans to roll out a vaccination program in the capital Kinshasa next week.

Leopards spotted multiple times in Henan's nature reserve

2024-11-24 19:59 Last Updated At：20:07

Leopards, along with other wild animals, have been frequently spotted in a nature reserve in Jiyuan City, central China's Henan Province in the past six months, articulating the success of local wildlife protection efforts.

Those wild animals were captured by infrared cameras in the Henan Taihang Mountain Macaque National Nature Reserve.

Staff members from the nature reserve discovered that since June, leopards have been passing through a specific location almost every month. Infrared cameras have captured 13 photos and six video clips of leopards.

Additionally, the cameras have also recorded other wildlife, including forest musk deer, brown-eared pheasants, macaques, leopard cats, koklass pheasants and red-bellied pheasants.

"The population of leopards is steadily increasing. Through pattern comparison, it has been confirmed that the number of leopards has reached 9 to 13 individuals. The downstream food chain resources for leopards are abundant. The frequent 'appearances' of leopards has articulated that the ecological environment is improving, with habitats suitable for wildlife expanding significantly," said Ren Yingfeng, staff member of the protection center of the Henan Taihang Mountain Macaque National Nature Reserve.

In recent years, the local area has implemented an integrated approach to the protection and restoration of mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes, grasslands, and deserts. A total of 600 hectares of ecological protection and restoration work has been completed, leading to significant improvements in the ecological environment.