The World Health Organization (WHO) has sounded fresh concern over the ongoing global spread of mpox, noting that the clade Ib strain of the virus has been detected in several countries outside Africa, including nations in Europe and Asia.
This information is contained in the 59th Situation Report on the multi-country mpox outbreak, which provides updates on the global epidemiological situation as of 30 September 2025, with regional and operational responses in Africa as of October 2025. WHO also stated that the report will now be released on a monthly basis.
The report indicates that 42 countries across all WHO regions recorded 3,135 confirmed cases of mpox in September 2025, including 12 deaths, corresponding to a case fatality ratio of 0.4 percent. More than 80 percent of the cases were reported from the African Region.
While cases in the African Region, Eastern Mediterranean, the Americas, and the Western Pacific showed a decline over the month, the European and South-East Asian regions experienced an increase during the same period.
Seventeen African countries reported ongoing transmission between 14 September and 19 October 2025, accounting for 2,862 confirmed cases and 17 deaths, representing a CFR of 0.6 percent. The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Kenya, and Ghana recorded the highest number of cases. The DRC continues to show a steady decline, while Kenya and Liberia are witnessing upward trends, and Ghana shows early signs of reduction.
Since the previous report, Malaysia, Namibia, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain have confirmed the detection of clade Ib of the monkeypox virus for the first time. Additional imported cases linked to this strain have also been reported in Belgium, Canada, Germany, Italy, Qatar, and Spain.
Six countries—Italy, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United States—have now reported local transmission of clade Ib among individuals with no travel history, signalling community spread beyond Africa.
The WHO also highlighted that at least five cases of clade Ib mpox have been reported among men who have sex with men. This represents the first evidence of previously undetected circulation of this strain in this population, which had previously only reported clade IIb infections since 2022.
Given these developments, WHO currently classifies the public health risk as moderate for men who have sex with men and low for the general population in non-endemic countries. The agency warned that sustained human-to-human transmission and uncontrolled outbreaks continue to pose a risk of ongoing community spread.
Mpox, previously known as monkeypox, is a viral zoonotic disease caused by the monkeypox virus. Its symptoms include fever, rash, and swollen lymph nodes. While most cases are mild, the disease can become severe, particularly in children, pregnant women, and individuals with weakened immune systems.
