Malaria: The Gavi Alliance is wary of the first vaccine predicted for 2015

French Translation of the Week

The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations (Gavi) is going to "keep an eye" on the first vaccine against malaria from GSK but prefers to wait for the opinion of the WHO to introduce it in its vaccination campaigns.

L'Alliance mondiale pour les vaccins et l'immunisation (Gavi) va "garder un oeil" sur le premier vaccin contre le paludisme de GSK mais préfère attendre l'avis de l'OMS pour l'introduire dans ses campagnes de vaccination.

This article has been translated from French. Click here to read the original version on Jeune Afrique.

The administrative council of the Gavi Alliance will have to "discuss" the first anti-malaria vaccine in November, indicated the general director, Seth Barkley, on Monday, October 14 after a press conference at the organization's headquarters in Geneva.  He explained that the Gavi Alliance was going to "keep an eye" on the new vaccine, but he highlighted that no decision would be made while the World Health Organization (WHO) sits on the fence.

The prospect of marketing the first vaccine against malaria targeting children in sub-Saharan Africa within two years was simultaneously welcomed with interest and prudence by experts fighting against the disease, one of the most fatal on the continent.  The British pharmaceutical company GSK, who developed the vaccine, must relight the fire in Europe.  Following GSK's example, in the case of a positive response, the WHO could recommend the vaccine starting in 2015, which would open the gate to diffusion across Africa (primarily through UNICEF and the humanitarian program called the Gavi Alliance) at a reduced price, with a margin of only 5%.

Objectives at Hand

Gavi spoke about the new vaccine during a press conference to present its advances on the subject of vaccinations.  In 2011 and 2012, the Gavi Alliance immunized about 97 million children for several different diseases in developing countries.  They must add about 48 million children to this figure this year.  The organization, assures Mr. Berkley on Monday, estimates that it will be able to achieve these goals in the period between 2011 – 2015: to vaccinate 250 million children and to consequently avoid about 4 million deaths.

Mr. Berkley also emphasized that the organization that he directs already gives the necessary funds (5.6 million Euros) – the three principle donors being the UK, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Norway – to effectively lead the mission by 2015.  The next donor meeting is scheduled for October 30 in Stockholm.  Malaria is responsible each year for approximately 660,000 deaths in Africa, primarily killing children under five years of age.

Article translated by Allie Stauss, Staff Intern for the Program on Leadership and Building State Capacity at the Wilson Center.

Photo attributed to US Army Africa on Flickr Commons.