(Reuters) - Bavarian Nordic has received an order worth $63 million from the U.S. government to produce additional bulk product and the final freeze-dried doses of its mpox and smallpox vaccine, Jynneos, it said on Tuesday.

The World Health Organization said on Friday it had cleared Bavarian Nordic's mpox vaccine, the first such shot to be approved by the agency for containing the spread of the disease in badly hit African countries.

(Reuters) -Bavarian Nordic said on Thursday it has signed an agreement with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) for one million doses of its mpox vaccine, Jynneos, for countries in Africa impacted by the disease outbreak.

Gavi, the global vaccine group, announced it will purchase 500,000 doses of Bavarian Nordic’s mpox vaccine. This marks Gavi’s first acquisition of the vaccine to aid in combating an outbreak in parts of Africa.

Bavarian Nordic has received a $63 million order from BARDA to produce Jynneos mpox vaccine doses. The contract will support the manufacturing of 1 million freeze-dried vaccines, set for delivery by 2026,

The UK government has purchased 150,000 mpox vaccine doses from Bavarian Nordic, enhancing its response to clade I mpox, while partnering with WHO and UNICEF.

Bavarian Nordic said it would work with UNICEF to deliver vaccines upon request. Image credit: Shutterstock / Anas-Mohammed. UNICEF has reached an agreement with mpox vaccine manufacturer Bavarian Nordic to supply one million doses of the shot for the hardest-hit countries in Africa.

An alarming surge in mpox cases has hit Africa, with more than 32,000 suspected infections recorded. The continent faces a critical challenge in mobilizing enough vaccine doses to curb the spread.