Ivory Coast Begins Historic Rollout of Second Approved High Efficacy R21 Malaria Vaccine

Jul 15, 2024, 04:56 PM

Ivory Coast has become the first country to introduce the R21 malaria vaccine into its routine immunization schedule, marking a significant milestone in the fight against malaria. The second approved malaria vaccine, co-developed by the University of Oxford and the Serum Institute of India, has also been authorized by Ghana, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and the Central African Republic, among others. The high efficacy R21 vaccine is recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and is aimed at protecting children from the age of six months. Malaria remains a major health challenge, killing over 600,000 people annually, with a significant number of victims being children under the age of five. The introduction of the R21 vaccine is expected to save millions of lives and represents a historic step forward in malaria control, heralding a new era in combating the disease.