GENEVA, Switzerland  (AFP) — The World Health Organisation said Monday that the mpox virus epidemic remains an international health emergency with more than 37,000 confirmed cases reported since it erupted.

WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the extension of the emergency following a meeting of international experts who noted progress in some countries but also highlighted a surge in west Africa and the spread of the virus outside Africa.

The WHO said since the epidemic started in early 2024 in Democratic Republic of Congo, there have been more than 37,000 cases in 25 countries, including 125 deaths.

DR Congo accounts for 60 per cent of the confirmed cases and 40 per cent of the deaths from the virus, that causes a rash and severe flu-like symptoms.

Uganda and Burundi have been the next worst hit, followed by Sierra Leone, which the WHO said has seen a surge in cases this year.

WHO first declared mpox an international emergency in August last year. The International Health Regulations emergency committee met last Thursday to discuss the  epidemic.

It decided that the epidemic remains an international emergency “based on the continuing rise in the number of cases, including a recent increase in West Africa, and likely ongoing undetected transmission in some countries beyond the African continent.”

It said some countries were still struggling to monitor the epidemic and with a lack of funding for treatment there was a need for “continued international support”.