The World Health Organization (WHO) approved and recommended, this Monday, the second malaria vaccine for children, R21/Matrix-M, developed by the University of Oxford.
The R21/Matrix-M vaccine is manufactured by the Serum Institute of India and has already been approved for use in Burkina Faso, Ghana and Nigeria.
“As a malaria researcher, I dreamed of the day when we would have a safe and effective vaccine against malaria. Now we have two,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director of the WHO, declared at a press conference.
In 2021, the RTS,S vaccine, produced by British pharmaceutical giant GSK, became the first recommended by WHO to prevent malaria in children in areas with moderate to high malaria transmission.
WHO regional director for Africa Matshidiso Moeti said the new vaccine has great potential for the continent and will help close the huge gap between demand and supply.
“The two vaccines can help strengthen malaria prevention and control efforts and save hundreds of thousands of young lives in Africa from this deadly disease,” he highlighted.
News update
Source: TSF
