Dr Paul Ngwakum, UNICEF’s health advisor for Eastern and Southern Africa, warned that Burundi’s children are suffering the brunt of the mumps outbreak and that the rate of infection and its health impact are at alarming levels.
So far, about 600 cases of infection have been confirmed, two-thirds of which are children under the age of 19. The number of these cases has increased in the last three weeks and there has been a 40 percent increase in cases.
Burundi has more than 14,000 suspected cases of the disease, but no deaths from mpox. While the Democratic Republic of Congo has 21 thousand 900 suspected cases and 717 infected people have lost their lives.
A senior UNICEF official emphasized that because of the limited geographical area it is possible to stop the spread of the disease in Burundi, the country needs to ensure immediate financial support and swift action.
Safe classrooms
The UN agency is concerned about the spread of Mpox among children under five as the school year begins in Burundi this week.
As in DRC, about 30 percent of the victims are children of this age group.
To raise awareness of the risks among teachers and parents and reduce disruptions, UNICEF worked with local education authorities to implement health measures in schools.
In addition, staff are being trained to recognize early symptoms of MPOX and maintain hand hygiene.
The appeal issued by UNICEF also provides mental health services for parents and frontline workers, who face difficulties in some communities due to the perception of a link between sex and Mpox.
The relationship between disease and sexual contact is responsible for some infections, but it is not the only cause.
deep ‘stigma’
Dr Ngwakum says that sexuality in Africa is not something that is discussed every day. And if they think you have a sexually transmitted disease, you suffer from so-called stigma.
“We try to explain that this is not the case. “In most children, it is spread through skin-to-skin contact, contact with animals or contact with infected material.”
There are also fears among local communities that serious health problems such as Ebola and Covid-19 may re-emerge. Therefore, efforts are currently being made to calm the fear by removing such apprehensions and misconceptions.