Health workers in Ivory Coast began administering the latest malaria vaccine to children on Monday, marking the start of a regional campaign that experts hope will reduce the impact of one of Africa’s deadliest diseases. Ivory Coast is the first country to roll out the new R21/Matrix-M vaccine, developed by the UK’s Oxford University and authorized by the World Health Organization (WHO) last October. The campaign aims to vaccinate approximately 250,000 children under the age of two.
The three-dose vaccine has shown over 75% effectiveness in preventing severe malaria and death in the first year, with extended protection for at least another year when boosted. Alice Kanga was among the many parents who brought their children to be vaccinated. “It’s really important for the children, for their health,” she said.
In 2021, WHO endorsed the first malaria vaccine, Mosquirix, made by GSK. However, Mosquirix requires four doses, and its protection diminishes within months. GSK also indicated limited production capacity, able to produce only about 15 million doses. In contrast, India’s Serum Institute has already produced 25 million doses of the Oxford vaccine and plans to manufacture at least 100 million doses annually.
Africa bears the brunt of malaria, with over 94% of the world’s approximately 249 million malaria cases and 608,000 deaths annually occurring on the continent. The disease, spread by mosquitoes, predominantly affects children under five and pregnant women.
Ivory Coast’s health minister, Pierre Demba, emphasized the government’s commitment to investing in the health of the nation’s children, stating, “They are the future of our country.”
Adrian Hill of Oxford University hailed the Ivory Coast rollout as the beginning of a new era in malaria control, expressing hope that the vaccine will soon be available to all African countries that wish to use it.
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