Angola recorded seven new mpox cases in 24 hours, according to the latest Health Ministry update released on Friday, October 17. The country now has 102 active infections. Nine patients were declared recovered over the same period and no deaths were reported. Authorities say they are keeping up enhanced surveillance in the affected provinces.
The figure is slightly lower than at the end of September. On September 23, the ministry reported 19 new cases in a single day and 107 active cases, spread across Moxico Leste, Luanda, Cabinda, Moxico, Huambo, Icolo e Bengo, Namibe and Uíge. The outbreak really took hold this year. Of the 442 cases confirmed up to September 5, 432 were recorded in 2026, compared with 4 in 2024 and 6 in 2025. At that point, 11 of the country’s 21 provinces were affected. The Cabinda enclave, which borders both Congos, accounted for most patients, with 92 of the 116 active cases. Two deaths have been recorded since 2024.
The ministry continues to urge people to follow prevention measures and to go quickly to a health centre if they show symptoms consistent with the disease.
Further north, Ebola is the main concern. The six CEMAC member states feel threatened by the outbreak that has hit the Democratic Republic of Congo since May. From October 13 to 15, their experts met in Brazzaville for the technical approval of nine harmonised protocols for epidemic preparedness and response.
The documents cover disease surveillance, alert management, health checks at borders, transport of biological samples, contact tracing and patient care. The aim is to help countries detect any case early and respond in the same way, especially in border areas where people and goods move in large numbers. The workshop brought together around a hundred health workers and officials from the sub-region, with support from bodies such as the World Bank.
The need is clear. A recent assessment put the zone’s health preparedness at 43%, well below the acceptable threshold of around 70%. Ludovic Fiomona, regional coordinator of the Central Africa Health Security Programme, nonetheless said he was satisfied with how prepared the countries were, adding that they had committed to applying the protocols straight away.
The meeting builds on a roadmap adopted in June by CEMAC health ministers, who had already held emergency talks at the time over the Ebola threat. The task now is to turn these procedures from paperwork into practice at the region’s border posts, ports and airports.