The Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare (Rospotrebnadzor) has announced the delivery of monkeypox diagnostic tests to African countries. According to the agency’s report, Congo has expressed a keen interest in obtaining Russian tests and enhancing collaboration regarding epidemic response. In response to this initiative, Rospotrebnadzor will provide Russian diagnostic drugs to other African countries.
From August 19 to 23, Russian specialists will conduct courses on infection prevention and diagnosis in Congo, with particular focus on monkeypox. Russian tests for detecting the disease have been tested and proven effective. “The diagnostic drugs are the latest development of the Pasteur St. Petersburg Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology of Rospotrebnadzor,” the agency emphasized.
Since 2014, Rospotrebnadzor has been fostering collaborations with African countries. Presently, the agency is engaged in cooperative efforts with 10 countries on the continent, where specialists are vigilantly monitoring and conducting joint research on highly perilous infections. In 2017, the Russian-Guinean Research Center for Epidemiology and Prevention of Infectious Diseases was launched, and it presently carries out up to 500 pathogen studies daily.