Monkeypox cases have crossed the 1,600-mark globally, resulting in the death of several people this year in the countries it is endemic to. Thanks to its unprecedented spread in non-endemic countries across the world, the World Health Organization's (WHO) Director-General, despite a lack of consensus among WHO's emergency committee members, declared the outbreak to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) over the weekend. The decision to declare the outbreak as PHEIC was based on the argument that the 'extraordinary event' meets the necessary criteria and requires a coordinated global response in tackling. The WHO's decision is indeed a timely one but it should in no manner lead to panic and stigmatization. Categorization as PHIEC only means that the outbreak "constitutes a public health risk through the international spread of disease" and needs countries to come together to contain it. It doesn't factor in aspects like transmissibility and mortality. The recent onslaught of viruses, coupled with changing climatic scenarios, is an indication that international cooperation towards tackling viral outbreaks should be more of a norm than an oddity. The PHEIC categorization is aimed at recommending to nations the ramping up of manufacture and supply of diagnostic testing, medicines and vaccines — apart from facilitating research and organized exchange of information among countries. It remains to be seen how effective the PHEIC categorization proves to be. However, one thing is certain — the results will be better than what they would be otherwise. Having already witnessed the irreparable devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, health experts and the general masses are duly wary of any such repeat. However, there has been no scientific evidence yet that the monkeypox virus — representing the family of long-eradicated smallpox virus — could turn out to be as lethal and transmissible as the SARS-Cov-2. As far as rate of transmission and virulence is concerned, the two prominent clades of the monkeypox virus — the Congo Basin (Central African) clade and the West African clade — show different behaviours. The Central African clade is learnt to be multiple times more transmissible and fatal than the West African clade. Reassuringly, multiple genome sequencings have found that almost all of the sequences collected during the current outbreak resemble the West African clade. Structurally, a major distinction between the monkeypox and SARS-CoV-2 virus is their genetic composition. While the monkeypox virus is a DNA virus which is bigger and bulkier, SARS-CoV-2 — being an RNA virus — is much lighter. This distinction has a major bearing on both the transmission and mutation of the two viruses. The transmission routes of monkeypox virus include close physical contact with infected animals and their body fluids; or through close physical (and presumably sexual) contact with infected humans, their body fluids, lesions and contaminated articles like clothes and bedsheets. Like SARS-CoV-2, monkeypox virus is also said to spread through air droplets, but since it is bulkier it must involve acts like sneezing and coughing. Apart from transmission, the bulky nature of monkeypox virus also limits its mutative capabilities. Unlike the SARS-CoV-2 which changed multiple forms and resulted in several strains, monkeypox virus is more stable. It must be noted, however, that low rate of mutation also limits the scope of tracing of transmission networks. The most worrying facet of the recent monkeypox outbreak is the vast grey area it has left behind it. A lot about the recent global monkeypox outbreak remains in the realm of the unknown. The biggest challenge before the scientific community is to decode the strange chain of transmissions. The real problem is not the monkeypox virus. It is rather the fact that the virus which infected people in hundreds in the past, and was limited to a certain region, has now gone global with cases touching well above the four-figure mark. Another notable fact is that many of the infected persons globally are found to have travel history to North America and not Africa! There is something in the spread of monkeypox virus this year that doesn't seem to fit in the frame we already have — be it the predominant transmission among gay and bisexual men or its probable out-of-Africa link. Concrete answers are needed. It is here that PHEIC categorization could chip in by facilitating exchange of information and research. Since African countries have been dealing with the monkeypox virus for decades, their wealth of knowledge and experience — when coupled with the technological edge of developed nations — can prove to be a life-saver for the entire world. Global scientific community was wrong in ignoring the monkeypox outbreak as it was endemic to Africa. The time has come to correct this wrong. While collaborative research will provide for required answers in the long term, for the time being, the PHEIC could ensure equitable access to available smallpox vaccines that are known to be cross-effective for the monkeypox virus. Only if the PHIEC tag helps facilitate vaccines and diagnostic kits to low- and middle-income countries, its purpose will be served. Otherwise, it will remain a hollow promise. What further needs to be done as a part of solution is to make masses aware and de-stigmatize them. Monkeypox can be tackled with composure and hygienic discipline. There should be no room for panic. It is worth noting here that New York — which shoulders a heavy burden of cases in the US — is demanding a change in name for monkeypox virus to prevent it from falsely getting linked to people of color. It is indeed inspiring. A new and informed outlook is needed towards a phenomenon which is new in many aspects despite being old.