Gavi invests N64 billion in roll-out of malaria vaccine in Nigeria, others

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance has committed nearly N64 billion (US$ 155.7 million) to the introduction, procurement, and delivery of malaria vaccine to Nigeria and other eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) had, weeks ago, recommended the widespread use of the RTS,S/AS01 (RTS,S) to specifically fight high P. falciparum malaria transmission.

The Board of Gavi, a public-private partnership, announced on Thursday, December 2, 2021 that the initial investment will take care of vaccine distribution between 2022 and 2025.

Gavi CEO, Dr Seth Berkley, said the investment will save tens of thousands of lives annually in sub-Saharan Africa which bears the heaviest malaria burden.

"The vaccine is an important additional tool to control malaria in Africa, alongside other interventions, such as routine use of insecticide-treated bed nets, indoor spraying with insecticides, malaria chemoprevention, and timely testing and treatment," he said.

RTS,S/AS01 malaria vaccine is to be provided in a schedule of four doses in children from five months of age for the reduction of malaria disease and burden.

The P. falciparum is the most deadly malaria parasite globally, and most prevalent in Africa where it kills more than 260,000 children under the age of five annually, with Nigeria one of the worst affected.

WHO's recommendation of the vaccine is based on results from an ongoing pilot programme in Ghana, Kenya, and Malawi that has reached more than 800,000 children, with more than 2.3 million doses administered, since 2019.

Nigeria recorded the highest number of malaria cases (27%), and highest number of malaria deaths (23%) in the world in 2019, according to WHO.

A survey of 500 Nigerians conducted by data aggregator, Premise, revealed that many believe the vaccine will be effective but are still hesitant to trust it until they know more.

A majority of respondents also believe the vaccine will be accessible to an extent for their children or children of loved ones [Premise] Pulse Nigeria

Over 40% of the respondents live in high-risk communities, and almost half already use mosquito repellent creams or sprays, and bed nets to protect against malaria.

65.91% of them are willing to allow their children receive the vaccine expected to roll-out next year.