Africa: Mpox in Uganda, Namibia's 1st cholera case in a decade and CCHF outbreak in Uganda and more
Mpox in Uganda
In a follow-up on the mpox outbreak in Uganda, the Ministry of Health now reports 2,332 laboratory- confirmed cases and 23 deaths since the beginning of the year, following only the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in total cases and deaths.
Most cases are among people in the age group 18 to 39 years, accounting for close to 70% of all cases reported across the country. The majority of deaths have been reported from Kampala, followed by Wakiso, Masaka City, and Mukono.
The outbreak remains largely concentrated in and around the capital, Kampala. So far, clade 1b MPXV, linked to the outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, has been detected in the country. In fact, Clade 1b has been isolated from all sequenced samples.
The outbreak started in July 2024 and the cumulative total mpox cases are 3685 cases and 29 deaths.
Cholera in Namibia
The Africa Centre for Disease Control (CDC) announced the first cholera case in Namibia since 2015.
The case was reported in an area close to the border with Angola, where a large cholera outbreak is ongoing, a 55-year-old woman from the Kunene region, who developed severe diarrhea, but has since recovered and was discharged from the hospital.
So far in Africa, 29,132 total cholera cases, including 1866 confirmed cases, have been reported, including 670 deaths have been reported from 11 African countries.
CCHF in Uganda
Health officials in Uganda on Friday confirmed an outbreak of the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) in the western district of Kyegegwa.
The case is a 28-year-old male from Kazizi village in the sub-county of Kyatega, who is under isolation at Bujubuli Health Center.
The patient who tested positive for the virus, presented with symptoms of excessive nose bleeding, headache, and general body weakness in late February.
In addition, two more suspected cases have been admitted to the isolation unit at the Bujubuli Health Center.
Diphtheria in South Africa
Between 1 January 2024 and 9 March 2025, 31 confirmed cases of respiratory diphtheria and 38 asymptomatic carriers of toxigenic C. diphtheriae, detected during contact tracing, have been identified in South Africa.
The majority of confirmed cases and carriers (93%, 64/69) were from the Western Cape, comprising 28 respiratory diphtheria cases and 36 asymptomatic carriers. The median age of cases of confirmed respiratory diphtheria was 31 years (range: 3–51 years), with 77% (24/31) aged over 18 years and the case-fatality ratio was 23% (7/31).
Dengue in Comoros
An outbreak of dengue fever is ongoing in Comoros. In the week ending March 2, 2025, a total of 42 cases were reported from the Anjouan Island. The outbreak has seen a gradual increase in the weekly number of cases since its onset. From February 3 to March 2, 2025, a cumulative total of 143 cases with one death (CFR 0.7%) have been reported from Anjouan Island.
Of these, 72 have tested positive by rapid diagnostic test. Most of the cases have been reported from Mutsamudu District on Anjouan Island. The serotype in circulation has not yet been determine due to lack of testing reagents.