Revolutionary Malaria Vaccine Incoming for 12 African Countries

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced that 18 million doses of the first-ever malaria vaccine will be distributed to 12 different countries across the African continent.

WHO shared the news via a statement on their official website on Wednesday, 5 July, adding that “the rollout is a critical step forward in the fight against one of the leading causes of death on the continent.”

An implementation programme is already underway in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi while new introductions will also be made in Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone and Uganda over the next two years.

Malaria kills nearly half a million children under the age of five each year, making it one of the continent’s deadliest diseases. Managing Director of Country Programmes Delivery at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Thabani Maphosa, has high hopes that the RTS,S/AS01 vaccine will make a big difference to many people.

“This vaccine has the potential to be very impactful in the fight against malaria, and when broadly deployed alongside other interventions, it can prevent tens of thousands of future deaths every year,” Maphosa said in the statement.

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