The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the European Commission have launched the Partnership to Accelerate Mpox Testing and Sequencing in Africa (PAMTA), a new initiative aimed at strengthening diagnostics, outbreak response, and local manufacturing for Mpox and other priority diseases. Co-funded by the EU4Health 2024 Work Programme, the €9.4 million project will be implemented over three years by Africa CDC and the African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM), with support from the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA).
This partnership marks a significant step in reinforcing Africa’s capacity to detect and respond to health threats. It will expand Mpox testing with a goal of 150,000 tests, build genomic sequencing capabilities to track the virus, train professionals in molecular diagnostics and data analysis, and promote the development of locally produced test kits. The initiative also reflects the strong momentum in Africa–EU health collaboration and aims to build resilient public health systems across the continent.
European Commission officials emphasized that PAMTA is the first joint initiative with Africa CDC and follows earlier support such as Mpox vaccine donations and research projects like MPX-RESPONSE. Together with initiatives like the Africa Pathogen Genomics Initiative, PAMTA forms a critical part of the long-term strategy to bolster Africa’s epidemic preparedness and ensure effective, localized responses to future health emergencies.
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