GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — A first delivery of mpox vaccines is expected to arrive in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the coming days, the World Health Organization’s chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Friday.

The WHO declared an international emergency over mpox on August 14, concerned by the surge in cases of a new strain, the Clade 1b, in the DR Congo and its spread to nearby countries.

After returning from DR Congo on Friday, Tedros told a press conference in Geneva: “We hope to have the first delivery in the next few days”.

More than 18,000 suspected cases of mpox have been reported in the DR Congo so far this year, with 629 deaths, said Tedros.

The figure included more than 5,000 cases and 31 deaths from the eastern provinces of North and South Kivu, where the new Clade 1b strain has been spreading.

“The number of reported cases of Clade 1b has been rising rapidly for several weeks. Fortunately, relatively few deaths have been reported in recent weeks,” said Tedros.

In addition, 258 cases of Clade 1b have been confirmed in Burundi, four in Rwanda, four in Uganda, two in Kenya and one each in Sweden and Thailand, he added.

In the DRC, Tedros met with President Felix Tshisekedi to discuss the outbreaks, the importance of clear communication on the virus and strong engagement with local communities.

“WHO is working to accelerate access to, and delivery of, vaccines,” the UN health agency’s director-general said.

“It’s vital to stress that although vaccines are a powerful tool, they are far from the only tool.”

“We believe we can stop these outbreaks in the next six months.

“But what this region of DRC needs more than anything else is a political solution to the long-running insecurity.”