The Presidential Task Force on Health Emergencies has developed guidelines to govern schools as the third-term of the 2024/25 academic year begins on Monday amid M-pox.
During a press briefing in Lilongwe on Friday, Minister of Health Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda, who is co-chairperson of the task force, said the Ministry of Education, which is part of the task force, has already been briefed on the guidelines and assured of safety during the school period.
“We have planned to intensify provision of clear information to schools on M-Pox. We will also be providing regular updates. School authorities have been encouraged to intensify regular observation of learners and collaborate with local health authorities. Other guidelines include installation of hand-washing facilities, avoiding overcrowding, handshakes and hugs,” she said.
This comes barely a day after a Malawi University of Science and Technology senior lecturer and medical virologist Dr. Gama Bandawe told the country that the risk of the disease spreading is higher in institutions such as schools.
“Students should avoid sharing utensils. Some of them, particularly in higher education, even share clothes and beddings, which puts them at high risk of contracting M-Pox,” he said.
On measures the task force has put in place to avoid the forthcoming campaign period posing a fertile ground for the spread of M-pox, Chiponda, who was joined by the task force co-chairperson Dr. Wilfred Chalamira Nkhoma, said they will ensure that human health supersedes politics.
“Here we are dealing with human life so we will ensure that the safety of Malawians comes first and that is why we have started early sensitising people on the disease,” she said.
World Health Organisation country representative Neema Kimambo said Malawi is among the 16 African countries that have reported positive cases of M-pox in the past six weeks, with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda topping the list.
“M-pox was reported in Africa in 2022 but the cases have risen by over 90 percent between 2024 and 2025, recording 28 000 cases in 23 countries. Out of these, 16 are active, including Malawi and its neighbouring countries,” she said.
M-pox is a viral illness caused by monkey pox virus, a species of the genus orthopoxvirus.
In separate interviews during the week, public health experts said there is need for the situation to be handled effectively by the public and Ministry of Health to ensure the disease does not spread rapidly as was the case with Covid-19.
Professor of public health and epidemiology at Kamuzu University of Health Sciences Adamson Muula in an interview on Wednesday said it is possible to prevent Mpox’s spread to teachers and learners if the already known hygiene methods are adhered to.
He said: “Although not yet needed, we as a country need to learn how we can get vaccinations if we end up needing it. For now, though, it is not needed, but we cannot afford to be unprepared.”
Muula said there is no doubt that there is an outbreak of Mpox in Malawi, considering that numbers keep escalating, though not to a level where people ought to be greatly worried.
He said the public must be guided by the Public Health Institute of Malawi on how the outbreak is spreading.
Said Muula: “We have suggested adequate personal hygiene, avoiding direct body contact with patients and their contacts and not sharing their clothes and beddings.
“But in some countries, including in Europe and the United States, Mpox spreads through sex, especially men who have sex with men. We do not know if this is the situation going on in Malawi. At present, we can be shooting in the dark until these matters are clarified,” he said.
Health and Rights Education Programme executive director Maziko Matemba in a separate interview on Wednesday said the situation warrants surveillance and community awareness, especially in hotspots where the cases are emerging from.
He said learning from Covid-19 interventions where a number of response mechanisms were developed, it will be important for the Ministry of Health to explore how they can use some of them in areas where it looks particularly risky.
“But also noting that schools will be opening soon, government should make sure that the Ministry of Education should liaise with Ministry of Health on the Mpox preventive measures in protecting children because if the risk becomes too high, it will be more than about the preventive measures,” said Matemba.
When asked if there are any special modalities to be considered in light of the disease, Ministry of Education spokesperson Mphatso Nkuonera said he needed time to consult before responding.
Ministry of Health Principal Secretary Dr. Samson Mndolo earlier said Malawi is working closely with WHO, United States’ Centre for Disease Control (CDC), Africa CDC and other partners to ensure proper surveillance, response and timely treatment of cases. As such, he allayed fears that the disease would escalate, saying the situation is under control.
“The public is further being advised to be on alert and take preventive and control measures as the disease has potential to affect more people. Mpox can be prevented by avoiding skin to skin contact with suspected or confirmed Mpox cases, observing good hygiene and using condoms during sexual activity,” said Mndolo.
The WHO fact sheet pertaining to Mpox states that the disease has vaccines which should be considered along with other public health interventions. It further states that Mpox is treated with supportive care for symptoms such as pain and fever with close attention to nutrition, hydration, skin care, prevention of secondary infections and treatment of co-infections, including HIV where present.
Symptoms of the disease, which usually last two to four weeks but may last longer in individuals with weakened immune systems, include rash, fever, sore throat, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes.
Africa CDC declared Mpox a public health emergency following its rapid spread. This meant affected governments would be assisted in coordination of response efforts; hence, increased flow of medicines and medical supplies.
When Malawi was faced with a surge in Covid-19, President Lazarus Chakwera ordered an immediate closure of schools on March 23 2020, a decision that affected 5.3 million school-going children and the schools remained closed up to August 2020.
