R21 Malaria Vaccine is a Milestone for Child Survival

The World Health Organization (WHO) today announced that UNICEF successfully delivered over 43,000 doses of the R21/Matrix-M™ malaria vaccine to Bangui, Central African Republic.

As of May 24, 2024, 122,000 additional R21 doses are scheduled for delivery, funded by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

The Central African Republic, with a population of over 5 million, is the first country to receive the R21 vaccine for routine childhood immunization. This marks another step forward in preventing the disease and saving children's lives. 

The WHO says that along with the earlier WHO recommendation of the RTS,S vaccine, there is now sufficient vaccine supply to scale up malaria vaccination in Africa.

Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Sudan, and Uganda are preparing to receive R21 shipments.

Director of UNICEF Supply Division Leila Pakkala commented in a press release, "Previous concerns about supply meeting demand are firmly behind us. Our priority is for the vaccines to reach every child at risk."

The Central African Republic has one of the highest rates of malaria incidence globally. In 2022, an estimated 1,733,000 malaria cases were reported in the country, averaging about 4747 cases a day.

The disease also claimed around 5180 lives over the year, or 14 deaths each day.

Dr. Sania Nishtar, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, stated, "That is what matters most – that countries, where our vaccines can be most impactful, can access them, saving thousands of lives each year and offering relief to families, communities, and entire health systems."

On October 2, 2023, the WHO recommended R21 vaccination to prevent malaria in children. R21 is a protein-based vaccine developed by the University of Oxford, using Novavax AB's Matrix-M™ adjuvant technology.

"The R21/Matrix-M™ vaccine is a vital new tool to help stop the devastating health and economic impact of malaria on nearly half of the world's population, including the tragic loss of 1,300 children every single day," said John C. Jacobs, President and Chief Executive Officer, Novavax, on May 20, 2024.