WHO Activates Global Health Emergency Corps
- Healthcare and General Service
- November 27, 2024
Highlights
- WHO and its partners have launched the GHEC in partnership with Member States to aid countries experiencing an Mpox outbreak
- Mpox cases have been documented in 18 African nations in 2024, with the rapidly spreading clade 1b strain also emerging in other parts of the world
On October 29, 2024, the World Health Organisation (WHO) stated that it has activated the Global Health Emergency Corps (GHEC) for the first time in response to a recent Mpox outbreak, indicating an urgent response attempt to contain the disease across several locations.
The WHO declared Mpox a public health emergency in August 2024, due to the rapid spread of a new clade in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and cases reported in neighbouring countries. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, emphasised the need for a coordinated international response to prevent further outbreaks and save lives in Africa and the DRC.
“WHO and partners are supporting the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo as well as other countries to implement an integrated approach to case detection, contact tracing, targeted vaccination, clinical and home care, infection prevention plus control, community engagement in addition to mobilisation, and specialised logistical support,” said Mike Ryan, MD, Executive Director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme.
