The Philippine Department of Health announced on Monday the discovery of a new case of monkeypox in the country, marking the first reported case since December last year.

Local news outlet ABS-CBN reported that the patient, a 33-year-old Filipino with no recent travel history outside the country, had close contact with an individual who had traveled abroad three weeks before symptoms such as fever and a rash appeared.

Read more: First case of dangerous Monkeypox strain recorded outside Africa

Last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the monkeypox outbreak in Africa a global health emergency requiring international attention.

Given the rising number of cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo and their spread to neighboring countries, WHO swiftly convened an expert meeting to assess the situation.

A global health emergency is the highest level of alert under the International Health Regulations, legally binding for 196 countries. Monkeypox is a contagious disease caused by a virus that is transmitted from infected animals to humans and can also spread between humans through close physical contact. The disease was named "monkeypox" after the virus, similar to the one that causes smallpox, was discovered in monkeys used for research in 1958. The virus is also known as "Mpox" by health authorities.

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