Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, yesterday expressed concern about the potential risk of Mpox clade 1b transmission into the state.

Abayomi said this during a news conference by the state Ministry of Health on Mpox in Lagos.

He said: “We are worried that there is a potential that this virus can be imported into Lagos because there are multiple airline routes and shipping routes that could bring passengers or persons or goods that are contaminated with this clade. “That is of concern to us in Nigeria, in Lagos, and to the continent.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that clade Ib mpox outbreak, which began in September 2023 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is having an increasing number of cases in the country. The virus has also spread to Cameroon, Rwanda, Burundi, among other countries.

Abayomi acknowledged the risk and virulence of the clade 1b variant, noting that the pathogen could adversely affect the welfare, well-being, and economic activity of multiple countries.

To mitigate the risk, Abayomi disclosed that the state had activated an Emergency Operation Centre and a statewide public health awareness campaign to educate the public on Mpox.

According to him, the proactive strategy is to enlighten residents on Mpox risk, and how to take proactive measures to curtail being exposed to the virus should the situation arise.

“Lagos knows that it needs to be proactive because of the density of our population, the risk that any contagion that is imported into Lagos can easily spread from person to person,” he said. The commissioner stressed that there were no active mpox cases in Lagos.

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