The Democratic Republic of Congo faces a major challenge in its monkeypox vaccination campaign. According to Cris Kacita, head of the national response, approximately one-third of the LC16 vaccines supplied by Japan are lost because they cannot be stored once prepared for injection.
Japan donated three million doses of LC16 to combat clade Ib, an emerging strain of the virus that triggered a global health alert last year. The second batch, of 1.5 million doses, arrived in September, nearly two years after the start of the outbreak.
Each vial of LC16 contains 250 doses of powder that must be reconstituted before administration and consumed within a few hours. When there are few participants in the vaccination program, the remaining doses are inevitably wasted. The World Health Organization indicates that, for this type of vaccine, waste can reach 50%.
Despite these constraints, the campaign is progressing in Kinshasa, where more than half a million people have been vaccinated with LC16 or the Bavarian Nordic vaccine. The DRC is continuing its efforts in the most affected provinces, despite logistical and security obstacles.
Monkeypox, a viral infection transmitted through close contact, usually causes mild symptoms but can be severe in children, pregnant women, and immunocompromised individuals. LC16 remains the only authorized vaccine for children as young as one year old and for adults, although its administration requires a specific technique.
The Japanese government, when contacted, indicated that it had not been informed of the losses, but trusts the Congolese authorities for the appropriate use of the doses.
