Kenya has detected its first Mpox case at a Taita-Taveta border point with Tanzania, according to the Health Ministry on Wednesday.

The virus was detected in a passenger at a border crossing in southern Kenya, the ministry said in a statement, adding that the person was traveling from neighboring Uganda to Rwanda through Kenya.

Kenyans have now been advised to ensure total hygiene in their surroundings by washing hands often in order to reduce their chances of contracting infection.

“Wash hands often with soap and water or hand sanitizer. If you have symptoms, seek health advice and avoid close contact with other persons. Avoid close contact with persons with suspected or confirmed disease,” the Ministry said in a statement.

This follows an announcement from Burundi on July 25 of three confirmed cases, while the Democratic Democratic Republic of the Congo on July 20 reported more than 11,000 suspected cases, including around 450 deaths.

The outbreak triggered a warning on Monday from the eight-member East African Community (EAC), which called on countries “to educate their citizens on how to protect themselves and prevent the spread of mumps.”.

The bloc would “convene a meeting of health experts to deliberate on the situation,” the EAC said, without giving a date.

Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, was first discovered in humans in 1970 in the DRC which is beleived to be caused by the monkeypox virus, a species of the genus Orthopoxvirus.

Common symptoms of mpox are a skin rash or mucosal lesions which can last 2–4 weeks accompanied by fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy, and swollen lymph nodes.

Mpox can be transmitted to humans through physical contact with someone who is infectious, with contaminated materials, or with infected animals.

It has since been mainly limited to certain West and Central African nations, with people mainly catching it from infected animals, such as when eating bushmeat.

In May 2022, Mpox infections surged worldwide, mostly affecting gay and bisexual men.