Maputo- August 2024- Mozambique reached an important milestone in malaria prevention among children with the introduction of the R21 vaccine, which will help reduce malaria cases and save thousands of children’s lives each year. In Africa, one child dies from malaria every minute.

Through Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and co-financing from the Government of Mozambique, the country has received about 800 000 malaria vaccine doses to vaccinate around 300 000 children through the country’s Expanded Programme on Immunization. The vaccine will cover 22 districts in Zambézia province. Children aged 6 to 11 months will receive the first dose in a 4-dose schedule.

“The malaria vaccine, which is being rolled out initially in Zambezia today, is one of the latest approaches in the fight against the disease,” said Hon Dr Armindo Tiago, Minister of Health. “The choice of Zambezia as the launch site is due to the high burden of the disease in the province. The vaccine will be administered in four doses with the aim of reducing the severe malaria illness and death.”

The WHO-recommended R21 vaccine is safe and effective. When provided in childhood immunization (programme?), it reduces over half of malaria cases (as high as 66%) in children during the first year of follow-up and prolonged protection with the fourth dose of vaccine. Moreover, This vaccine represents an advancement for child health, disease control and reduction of child mortality. In Mozambique, malaria endemic, with a prevalence of 32% in under 5 children.

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“The introduction of the malaria vaccine into Mozambique’s childhood vaccination programme is a historic event because it is the result of research and trials carried out by Mozambican scientists in Mozambique that led to the development of the first vaccine of its kind, the RTS,S vaccine. This pioneering work laid the foundations for WHO to recommend the RTS,S and R21 vaccines for childhood immunization from 2021,” Dr Severin von Xylander, WHO Representative in Mozambique

Gavi, UNICEF, WHO and other partners are supporting the Ministry of Health in the preparation, acceptance and introduction of the malaria vaccine. The support ranges from developing vaccine implementation plans, communication strategies, conducting health professional training and community engagement, and ensuring sufficient cold chain capacity.