Ghana has Become the First Country to Approve a Highly Effective Malaria Vaccine 

The R21/Matrix-M vaccine, the first to exceed the World Health Organization’s target of 75% efficacy, has been cleared for use by Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority in children aged 5-36 months, the group at highest risk of death from malaria. The WHO has yet to recommend the R21 vaccine for widespread use and until it does there is a question mark over the amount of international funding available for it. The vaccine’s phase 3 trial is ongoing, but earlier trials have shown efficacy levels of 77%, a level maintained after a single booster dose given a year later. However, observers warned it was “no silver bullet” in the complex fight against the mosquito-borne disease. An estimated 619,000 people died from malaria in 2021, the vast majority of them children in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the WHO. In Ghana, where the disease is both endemic and perennial, an estimated 5.3m cases and 12,500 estimated deaths were recorded.
 SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN