World’s biggest vaccine maker, Serum Institute of India (SII) will start rolling out a cheap new malaria inoculation in Africa in May, strengthening the fight against one of the most deadly infectious diseases across the globe.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Malaria kills more than 600,000 people a year, with 95 per cent of them in Africa.
It is deadlier among the young, and the annual toll of malaria deaths includes nearly 500,000 African children under the age of 5.
25 million doses of the new vaccine, developed along with Oxford University researchers and known as R21 is to be shipped by Serum Institute of India (SII).
“In terms of importance and saving lives… it’s going to be a hugely impactful vaccine, SII chief executive Adar Poonawalla said.
“We’ve offered these vaccines to the African continent at $4 or less in the first year itself. And then as we scale up, maybe we can bring that down a little bit further.”
The R21 vaccine, a three-dose course and booster shot for children aged 5-36 months is the second malaria shot approved by the WHO.
