The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) on Wednesday recommended that African countries use the Moroccan-made “UM6P-MAScIR MPOX qPCR 1.0” test for the detection of monkeypox.
In a statement, the center stated that “this test has been officially published on the list of tests recommended by the center, after being evaluated and approved by the health authorities of the Democratic Republic of Congo,” which is considered an epicenter for monkeypox.
The same source added that the center “recommends African countries, through a joint plan with the World Health Organization, to adopt PCR tests for the detection of monkeypox cases.”
This test was developed by a team at the specialized center for diagnostic kits and medical devices affiliated with the Moroccan Foundation for Advanced Science, Innovation, and Research.
According to the statement, the Moroccan innovation has been registered with the Directorate of Medicines and Pharmacy under the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, and its “readiness for export to the African continent and the Moroccan market has been confirmed.”
The Africa CDC statement says that “this innovation is in line with the African Union’s efforts to strengthen Africa’s self-reliance in the health sector, with the aim of improving the continent’s capacity to prepare for and respond to health threats,” stressing that “this is an inspiration for African manufacturers.”
The World Health Organization announced in a statement on Monday that a new meeting of its emergency committee is imminent “to discuss whether monkeypox still constitutes a global health emergency.”
According to the same source, the latest figures on suspected monkeypox cases in the African continent reached about 47,000 cases, and deaths are stable at around 10,000.
In early September, Morocco announced its first confirmed case of monkeypox.
In October, Siga Technologies (SIGA.O) announced in a statement that it had signed an agreement with the Kingdom of Morocco to supply the Ministry of Health and Social Protection with the “Tpoxx” treatment, which is used to combat monkeypox (mpox), in response to the Kingdom’s request to strengthen its preventive preparedness against any potential outbreak of the disease.
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