Nigeria, which accounts for just 1% of Africa’s confirmed mpox cases, has become the first African country to receive a shipment of mpox vaccines outside of clinical trials. This week, the country received 10,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine, manufactured by Bavarian Nordic and donated by the United States government.
“We are pleased to receive this modest initial donation of the mpox vaccine, which is safe and effective,” said Nigeria’s Minister of Health, Muhammad Ali Pate. “We will continue to strengthen surveillance and remain vigilant to prevent and control mpox.”
Dr. Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa CDC, confirmed that Nigeria was one of two African countries that had issued regulatory approval for the vaccine’s introduction. Nigeria’s preparedness, highlighted by a robust vaccination plan, secured its place as the first recipient of these doses.
According to the latest epidemic intelligence report from Africa CDC, Africa has reported nearly 21,000 suspected cases and fewer than 3,400 confirmed mpox cases this year. While the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) accounts for 95% of suspected and 90% of confirmed cases, Nigeria has confirmed just 40 cases with no deaths—only 1% of the continent’s total confirmed cases. Despite these relatively low numbers, Nigerian public health officials have heightened alert levels and bolstered outbreak preparedness.
Intensive Response Efforts
Dr. Jide Idris, head of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), has been leading the country’s response since mpox was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) for the second time in two years. Idris has been managing a flurry of activities, including preparations, briefings, and coordinating the national response.
“It is very busy, very busy,” Idris said, noting that Nigeria has not encountered the Clade 1b strain, which is rapidly spreading in the DRC and neighboring countries. Instead, Nigeria has focused on a three-pronged strategy: enhancing surveillance at ports of entry, boosting laboratory capacity for testing and genomic surveillance, and providing medical countermeasures (MCM) commodities.
Although mpox is currently classified as a PHEIC, the NCDC’s latest situation report for Nigeria shows a stable outlook with no surprises in case counts, no fatalities, and a consistent pattern of cases across the states. As of August 18, Nigeria’s cumulative case count for 2024 stands at 40 cases across 19 states, with only five states reporting more than two confirmed cases.
Children under the age of 10 account for 35% of confirmed cases in 2024, a shift from previous years when most cases were in young adults aged 10-40 years, predominantly male.
Beyond Nigeria: A Global Perspective
The 10,000 vaccine doses will be administered in a two-dose schedule to 5,000 individuals at the highest risk of mpox, including close contacts of confirmed cases and frontline healthcare workers. The vaccination effort will focus primarily on the five states with recorded cases, with provisions for reactive vaccination in other states as needed.
Despite the DRC’s central role in the outbreak, it did not receive the first vaccine shipment, raising questions about the global health community’s prioritization in dose allocation and delivery. Gavi CEO Sania Nishtar emphasized that the current supply of mpox vaccines is insufficient to meet demand in Nigeria, the DRC, or other affected areas. She stressed the importance of strengthening surveillance, data collection, case management, and community engagement as critical components for understanding and ultimately containing the outbreak.
Idris echoed this sentiment, attributing Nigeria’s ability to contain the spread of mpox to its extensive experience in managing multiple outbreaks, including more deadly ones, and its “surge capacity” in coordinated response mechanisms, genomic sequencing, and molecular diagnostics. This capacity has enabled Nigeria to report accurate case numbers with a minimal gap between suspected and confirmed cases, distinguishing it from other African nations.