The World Health Organization (WHO) is set to distribute its first malaria vaccine in early 2024, following successful field tests in three African nations. The vaccine, called Mosquirix or RTS,S, will be deployed in 30 African countries, according to a statement from the WHO, Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Trials in Ghana, Malawi, and Kenya showed the vaccine to be safe and effective, reducing incidents of severe malaria by up to 30%.
Nearly 30 African countries have said they want to receive doses. In addition to the three test countries, which will continue to receive doses, nine other countries will benefit from supplies, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. The WHO, UNICEF, and Gavi estimate that the global demand for malaria vaccines is expected to reach 40-60 million doses annually by 2026 and then between 80-100 million doses annually by 2030.
Malaria is a disease transmitted to humans by the bites of certain types of mosquitoes and killed 619,000 people worldwide in 2021, according to the latest WHO figures. The introduction of a vaccine marks a significant milestone in the fight against the disease, which has long plagued many African countries.
The first doses of Mosquirix are expected to arrive in the last quarter of 2023, and the vaccine’s use has received widespread support from the international community. The African Union’s commissioner for social affairs, Amira Elfadil Mohammed, praised the vaccine and acknowledged that it would complement other preventative and curative measures.
The success of Mosquirix also signifies considerable progress towards the elimination of malaria and the achievement of the third of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, which is to end the epidemics of communicable diseases such as malaria by 2030.
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