Namibia battle-ready against monkeypox, says Shangula

No case of monkeypox has ever been recorded in Namibia, however, the country is always vigilant for any disease that may affect the country.

A major outbreak of the virus is currently prevalent worldwide, especially in Europe, where it is not endemic. More than 300 new cases were reported in 19 countries worldwide in May, including Britain, America, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany and Spain.

Health minister Dr Kalumbi Shangula said although several cases are currently being recorded in Europe and America, among others, Namibians have no reason to panic.

"Monkeypox is well known - from the agent that causes it, to prevention, symptoms and treatment," he said.

According to the minister, the most obvious symptoms are enlarged lymph nodes and scabs.

"The public should be aware of cases that are reported in Europe and America in particular, but should not panic."

Should you suspect you have monkeypox or were possibly in contact with someone who has the virus, Shangula said the ministry's toll-free emergency number 0800 100 100 should be called.

Not another Covid

In neighbouring South Africa, the executive director of the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, professor Adrian Puren said monkeypox would probably find its way to the country, but he does not think the virus that causes it will become epidemic in South Africa.

That country, like Namibia, receives many international travellers, but Puren emphasised that this can be addressed through contact tracing and isolating and monitoring infected people.

He also emphasised that it is not a highly contagious virus like SARS-Cov-2 that causes Covid-19.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) earlier this week said it was too early to say whether the recent outbreak of the virus could lead to a global pandemic. The organisation acknowledged that little is known about the rise in cases in non-endemic countries, but stressed the risk to the general public remains low.

Scientists are currently conducting research in an attempt to determine what causes the sudden, unusual increase in cases, given that most of them are not linked to travel patterns.

A strain of the virus occurring in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and central parts of Africa is more deadly, while another less deadly one has been reported to originate in West Africa. Countries where monkeypox is endemic include the DRC, Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Côte d'Ivoire.

No need to vaccinate

Monkeypox is a rare but generally moderate viral infection that can cause flu-related symptoms including a rash, fever, headache, body aches, swelling and back pain.

It is typically transmitted through lesions, body fluids or materials that have been in contact with an infected person or animal. There is no vaccine against monkeypox commercially available, but the vaccine for smallpox, which was eradicated by 1980, is 85% effective against it.

Dr Rosamund Lewis, of the WHO's emergency programme, stressed there is no need for mass vaccinations against the disease and there is also no reason for travel restrictions.

As in the case of Covid-19, social media is used to send various conspiracy theories into the world about the disease. However, there is no evidence that the disease was cultured in a laboratory or that the outbreak, as the conspirators were also in the case of Covid-19, was deliberately planned by Bill Gates or Anthony Fauci.

Monkeypox is also not linked to Covid-19 vaccines, she assured, adding that it is caused by a totally different virus than the one found in the vaccine.

Another claim is that Covid-19 vaccines suppress the immune system and therefore make people more susceptible to infections. The opposite, however, is true - vaccines stimulate the immune system and do not deplete it, thus making it more effective in targeting a certain infection, Lewis said.

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- Additional information from Netwerk24 / Reuters / BBC