By Grace Q. Bryant
The Ministry of Health (MOH), through the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI), has launched a two-day Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop on Mpox vaccination for national health staff.
The workshop, held from March 13-14, 2025, aims to enhance Liberia’s capacity to prevent and control the spread of Mpox through a robust immunization strategy.
With support from key partners, the training focuses on equipping participants with essential knowledge and skills to identify Mpox symptoms, implement preventive measures, and administer the Modified Vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic (MVA-BN) Mpox vaccine.
Additionally, the workshop covers crucial topics such as vaccine storage and handling, adverse event monitoring, waste management, and risk communication strategies.
Trained personnel will be responsible for cascading this knowledge to other healthcare workers across the country to ensure widespread awareness and effective vaccine distribution.
During the opening session, Monday Julius, WHO Team Lead for Health Emergencies, commended Liberia for being at the forefront of adopting Mpox vaccination strategies.
He acknowledged the collaborative efforts of the WHO, Africa CDC, and other stakeholders in making the vaccine rollout a reality.
“Liberia is fortunate to be among the few countries championing this vaccination approach. With immense support from Africa CDC, WHO, and other organizations, we are working together to ensure the successful rollout of this vaccine,” Dr. Julius stated.
Echoing this sentiment, Africa’s CDC Senior Country Representative, Bakary Sonko reaffirmed his organization’s commitment to strengthening Liberia’s health emergency response.
He encouraged participants to fully engage in the training to enhance nationwide Mpox prevention efforts.
The workshop was officially launched by the Acting Program Manager for EPI, Yuah Nemah, who represented the Ministry of Health’s Senior Management Team.
He emphasized the critical role of trained professionals in ensuring effective vaccine distribution and public awareness.
Mpox remains a public health emergency of international concern, as reaffirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO) during its International Health Regulations (IHR) Committee meeting in February 2025.
The continued global spread of the virus, including in countries with no previous cases, has heightened the urgency of response measures.
Vaccination has been identified as a key strategy to curb the outbreak, and WHO has encouraged all affected nations to integrate immunization into their public health response.
