Key Considerations: Mpox, Mining, and Vulnerabilities of Women and Children in eastern DRC

This brief presents considerations for contextualising and responding to the mpox outbreak in the mining towns of South Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The brief focuses on women and children living and working in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) areas. In South Kivu, in eastern DRC, most documented mpox cases have been in women (including women who engage in transactional sex) and children under the age of 15, including newborns.

This brief highlights relevant socio-political contexts related to ASM, livelihoods, population mobility, and conflict and public health interventions. It discusses considerations for mpox vulnerabilities and access to healthcare for women and children. This brief draws on a SSHAP roundtable discussion on mpox in the DRC held in May 2024; conversations with experts and health actors active and/or knowledgeable in the region and outbreak; the authors’ own expertise on women’s and children’s lives in ASM areas in South Kivu; and academic and grey literature.