A Moroccan company has become the first in Africa to produce mpox tests, addressing critical shortages of diagnostic tools for the virus on the continent. Moldiag, a Moroccan startup, began developing the tests after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared mpox a global health emergency in August.
The development comes as African nations, including those near the epicenter of the outbreak in eastern Congo, have struggled with a lack of testing supplies. While the WHO has approved mpox vaccines and plans to distribute tests, treatments, and vaccines to the most vulnerable populations, many countries still lack the laboratory capacity to confirm cases.
Abdeladim Moumem, founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Moldiag, said the company’s tests could offer an affordable and efficient solution to these shortages. “For mpox, the WHO recommends a test price of around $5, and we are offering it for less than that,” he said. “Our goal is to provide cost-effective solutions for Africa.”
Moldiag received approval to distribute its mpox tests from Africa’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) in November, though it has not yet applied for expedited approval from the WHO. In contrast, the WHO has already approved three mpox tests from American and Swiss companies and is evaluating five others from manufacturers in Spain and China.
Moldiag began accepting orders last month from East African nations, including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Uganda, and Burundi. The company is also collaborating with institutions in Senegal, Ivory Coast, and other countries, with plans to increase production as demand rises.
“In the first phase, we are expecting to ship around 50,000 tests to these countries,” Moumem said. “We anticipate growing demand, and we are ready to scale up production.”
The outbreak has been particularly severe in East Africa, with more than 59,000 cases and 1,164 deaths reported across 20 African countries this year, according to the Africa CDC. The DRC, Burundi, and Uganda have been among the hardest-hit countries.
Mpox, which is primarily spread through close skin-to-skin contact, often causes visible skin lesions, which can make individuals less likely to spread the virus due to the obvious symptoms. However, diagnosing mpox can be difficult because many of its symptoms resemble other diseases like chickenpox or measles.
Health authorities have emphasized the importance of testing to track the virus and prevent further spread. However, testing has been limited due to the lack of laboratory capacity in many regions, especially in Congo’s 26 provinces, where most cases are not confirmed by lab tests. Instead, doctors often rely on symptoms and patient history for diagnosis.
Moumem, whose company was founded within Morocco’s Foundation for Advanced Science, Innovation and Research (MASCIR), believes that producing the tests locally will allow for a faster, more efficient response to outbreaks. Moldiag has also produced millions of COVID-19 and tuberculosis tests for use in Morocco and other African countries.
Mpox is primarily transmitted through close contact with an infected person’s skin or contaminated clothing and bedding. Testing involves swabbing the rash of a suspected patient and sending the sample to a lab for processing.
While experts do not recommend testing asymptomatic people as was done during the COVID-19 pandemic, they stress the importance of diagnostic tools in identifying and isolating those infected with mpox, especially given the virus’s potential to spread undetected.
Africa CDC has also procured tests from manufacturers in the United States, China, the European Union, and Singapore, but only those requiring laboratory processing have been approved by the Africa CDC or WHO. Moldiag’s tests could offer a more accessible and affordable alternative for countries that need them most.
