Federal Government of Nigeria has said there is high hope that the nation will get the newly-recommended R21/Matrix-M vaccine recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the prevention of malaria in children by mid-2024.
Gatekeepers News reports that Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of NPHCDA, Dr Faisal Shuaib, disclosed this in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH on Monday.
The WHO, on Monday, recommended the R21 malaria vaccine following advice from its Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation and the Malaria Policy Advisory Group.
The NPHCDA boss said there was hope that Nigeria would get the R21 malaria vaccine by mid-2024.
Shuaib said, “WHO has to prioritise Nigeria because Nigeria has a population of kids with malaria burden, so they have to look at places where the burden of malaria is high and prioritise those countries. So, definitely, there is hope that Nigeria will get it in mid-2024
“We are working with our partner, Gavi, and it is a priority for us. We will announce the date when Nigeria will get it in the next few days but it is great news that the WHO has recommended the vaccine.”
