THE World Health Organization (WHO) said there was no in-country transmission of monkeypox or mpox in the Philippines.
"Those cases are independent cases, and most of the cases are under investigation. The government is working very hard to contain these cases ... there is no death. We continue to improve the capacity to prevent, detect, and to treat the cases in the country," WHO Philippines country representative Dr. Rui Paulo de Jesus said in a hybrid news conference on Thursday.
De Jesus added that as of October 10, there were 24 confirmed mpox cases in the country, all of which were Clade II (endemic to West Africa), and no deaths were reported.
However, he cautioned that the country is not completely safe from mpox, and more efforts were needed to contain the disease.
Dr. Gina Samaan, regional emergency director of WHO's Health Emergencies Program, said the Western Pacific Region recorded 4,500 cases of mpox since 2022, mostly Clade II.
She added the WHO was closely monitoring the global situation, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where Clade 1b was recently detected.
"Countries globally are monitoring the situation, responding to outbreaks, emphasizing surveillance and response measures to quickly detect, respond and prevent further transmission of cases," Samaan said.
In a related development, the WHO said that the 75th session of the Western Pacific Regional Committee will be held at the WHO Western Pacific Regional Office in Ermita, Manila, from October 21 to 25.