Accra gave the green light on Thursday April 13 for the use of a new malaria vaccine developed by the University of Oxford, thus becoming the first country to approve this vaccine described as “revolutionary” by the scientists who ‘have developed.
The R21/Matrix-M vaccine, developed by scientists at the University of Oxford in the UK and manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, has been approved for use in children aged 5 to 36 months, the age group age most at risk of death from complications of malaria. “It is hoped that this crucial first step will enable the vaccine to help Ghanaian and African children effectively fight malaria,” said a statement from the University of Oxford.
Oxford’s R21/Matrix-M vaccine has been shown to be 77% effective in preventing malaria, above the 75% target set by the World Health Organization (WHO) . Malaria is a tropical disease caused by parasites transmitted by the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. This pathology is one of the leading causes of infant mortality in Africa.
In 2021 (last known data), the WHO estimated the number of malaria cases worldwide at 247 million. This parasitic disease has caused the death of 627,000 people, mainly children, on the African continent. While it has been eradicated in most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, malaria continues to wreak havoc in Africa. More than 9 out of 10 cases of malaria and 96% of deaths are recorded on the continent. Children under 5 account for 80% of malaria deaths in Africa.
