WHO IS PREPARING TO LAUNCH THE FIRST MALARIA VACCINE IN AFRICA

  • 21/07/2022

Concerns over the utility of the world's first authorized malaria vaccine have emerged from an unexpected source: the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, probably the vaccine's biggest supporter.

The WHO recognised the vaccine last October as a "historic" achievement in the fight against malaria, but the Gates Foundation announced this week that it will no longer fund the shot.

Some scientists are perplexed by the decision, warning that it could put millions of African infants at risk of malaria and damage future efforts to solve stubborn public health problems. 

The vaccine, known as Mosquirix by GlaxoSmithKline, is roughly 30% effective and takes four doses.

According to Philip Welkhoff, the Gates Foundation's director of malaria projects, the malaria vaccine has "far lower efficiency than we would want." He explained the decision to discontinue funding after spending more than $200 million and several decades developing the vaccine, saying the shot is relatively expensive and logistically difficult to provide.

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