Share this article

The Ministry of Health, KCCA, and UNICEF Uganda are conducting Mpox risk communication campaigns across Kampala and Entebbe. The effort focuses on raising awareness about the virus, its prevention, and its impact on high-risk groups.

A Village Health Team (VHT) member conducts risk communication on Mpox at Trinity Church Mengo

The Ministry of Health (MoH) and the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA), in collaboration with UNICEF Uganda, have conducted risk communication activities on Mpox across the five divisions of Kampala city and Entebbe Municipality.

This initiative is part of an ongoing community sensitization campaign aimed at curbing the spread of the virus, with a particular focus on children.

According to Mr. Moses Muhimbise from KCCA’s Central Division Health Team, Mpox has a case fatality ratio (CFR) of 0.26% and can only be confirmed through laboratory testing due to its similarity in presentation to measles, chickenpox, and scabies.

He emphasized preventive measures, stating, “Individuals can protect themselves from Mpox by practicing proper hand hygiene, avoiding close contact with infected persons, refraining from sharing personal items such as bedding, utensils, or clothing, avoiding contact with or consumption of wild animals, and ensuring access to vaccination for individuals who have been in close contact with infected persons.”

The Reverend Achipa Patricia Laki, Assistant Vicar of St. Andrew’s Church of Uganda, Bukoto, urged congregants and Ugandans at large to take precautions, stressing that Mpox is a real and dangerous virus spreading rapidly within communities.

The Mpox risk communication events, conducted on December 15, 2024, were held in several churches, including:

Nakawa Division: St. Andrew’s Church of Uganda, Bukoto

Wakiso District: All Saints Church, Buddo, and St. Steven’s Church, Nansana

Kawempe Division: Bwaise Pentecostal Church

Makindye Division: St. Luke’s Church, Kibuye, and St. Stephen’s Church, Lukuli

Central Division: Trinity Church, Meng, Appointed Harvesters Church, and New Jerusalem Restoration Church

Kira Division: St. Thomas Kira Church of Uganda and St. Peter’s Nsasa Church

Entebbe Municipality: Deliverance Church, Kigungu

Since the confirmation of Uganda’s first Mpox case in July 2024, the country has recorded 800 cases, 546 recoveries, and four fatalities. The outbreak has disproportionately affected high-risk groups, including commercial sex workers, street children, truck drivers, fishing communities, and individuals in confined settings such as prisons and massage parlours. According to Dr. Augustine Lubanga, National Medical Director of AHF Uganda Cares, males aged 19–39 are the most affected demographic.

Dr. Lubanga further highlighted that the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA) encompassing Kampala, Wakiso, Mukono, and surrounding districts accounts for 64% of Uganda’s Mpox cases. Other hotspots include Nakasongola, Mayuge, and Luwero.

VHT member conducts risk communication at St. Andrews Church Bukoto

Understanding Mpox

Mpox (monkeypox) is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus. Symptoms typically appear 5 to 21 days after exposure and may include a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes, and fever. While most individuals recover fully, some cases can be severe.

Mpox can affect anyone and spreads through direct contact with infected persons via touch, kissing, or sexual activity. The virus can also spread through hunting, skinning, cooking, and consuming infected animals, or by sharing contaminated items such as bedding, clothing, or needles. Pregnant women can transmit the virus to their unborn child during pregnancy, after birth, or through breastfeeding.

Prevention Measures

• Maintain high standards of hygiene, including regular handwashing with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• Regularly clean contaminated surfaces.
• If infected, isolate to prevent spreading the virus.
• Avoid sharing personal items, such as towels, bedding, clothing, and sharp objects.
• Refrain from shaking hands, hugging, kissing, or pecking.
• Practice fidelity in sexual relationships and avoid sexual activity during infection. WHO recommends practicing safer sex, including using condoms, for 12 weeks (3 months) after recovering from Mpox.

Background

On August 14, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Mpox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern the second such declaration in two years. A day earlier, on August 13, 2024, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) had also recognized Mpox as a public health emergency of continental security. These declarations highlight the critical need for coordinated efforts to curb the spread of this disease.