First Malaria Vaccine To Be Rolled Out In 12 African Countries

Over the next two years, a long-awaited vaccine for malaria will be rolled out in 12 African countries, the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Global Vaccine Alliance (Gavi) and UNICEF said in a joint statement.

Eighteen million doses of the Mosquirix (RTS,S) vaccine, developed by British pharmaceutical giant GSK plc, will be administered across different regions of Africa.

Some of these countries include Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone and Uganda.

The vaccine has already been administered to more than 1.7 million children in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi, as part of a pilot programme which resulted in “substantial reduction” in severe malaria, the statement said.

“The roll out is a critical step forward in the fight against one of the leading causes of death on the continent,” the statement said.

Africa bears the largest malaria burden, accounting for nearly 95% of cases and 96% of fatalities worldwide. According to WHO data, the region reported 234 million malaria infections and 5,93,000 fatalities in 2021.