Health
Many Nigerians have expressed delight at the discovery of the vaccine for malaria. Since the new vaccine is targeted at children in the first instance, the usual reluctance in accepting vaccines in the country may not be noticeable for now. However, the breakthrough will save millions of lives lost to malaria in Africa every year.
By Anthony Isibor.
SINCE the World Health Organisation, WHO, announced the release of the first-ever malaria vaccine, on October 6, 2021, Nigerians and in extension Africans have come out to embrace it as a welcome development in the fight against the deadly disease which has continued to claim millions of lives in Africa.
WHO says that the vaccine, which has a four-dosage plan to complete the dose, is an immunological approach against the plasmodium parasite.
According to UNICEF, malaria is a life-threatening disease, responsible for the death of about 260,000 children in Africa in 2020 alone. WHO adds that every two minutes a child dies from malaria with children under the age of five and pregnant women being the most at risk of the deadly disease.
While malaria has remained one of the oldest diseases that have plagued the human population for several decades; history dates it as far back as 2700 BC, the development of vaccine, which have been known to be the permanent solution have remained elusive until now, after many years of researches.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, the pertinent question at this point remains, how will this vaccine be distributed. Will priority be accorded to high burden countries, will children in these countries have access to this vaccine at all, with inequalities are already seen in the COVID-19 vaccination globally, and, what should be done to ensure that the malaria vaccine gets to the right people, at the right time, at the right place and the right dosage?
According to Prof. Oyewale Tomori, professor of virology and former Vice-Chancellor, Redeemer’s University, Ede, “The anticipated rollout of the vaccine would boost the health of millions of at-risk children on the continent.
While speaking with NAN, the professor advised people to continue their age-long malaria preventive measures. He noted that the WHO’s recommendation does not immediately usher in widespread use of the RTS,S, vaccine, rather, it marked the beginning of the vaccines.
“Yes! another bullet in the armory against malaria, but certainly not yet the magic bullet. We must continue with the age-old and new drug therapies and most importantly, the prevention methods -antiseptic nets, vector control, environmental sanitation,” he advised.
Reacting to the development, Gloria Eze, a mother of two and an insurance worker, who lives in Otta area of Ogun state, expressed optimism that the introduction of the vaccine will bring an end to the menace of malaria in Nigeria.
“I can’t wait to have all my family members vaccinated. I am tired of going to the hospital, constantly for the same thing,’’ she said.
On her own part, Martha said: “The government should just tell us how to get it and where. I hope its free though,” she added.
NAN reports that Odinaka Obeta, Zero Malaria Youth Champion and West African Lead, ALMA Youth Advisory Council, had also added that another major area of concern is the affordability of the vaccine.
“With the high cost of antimalaria drugs in the Nigerian pharmaceutical market, what will be the fate of families living in rural areas,” he said.
He recalled that GSK, the manufacturers of the RTS, S malaria vaccine, had said that the vaccine development cost millions of US dollars. Obeta added that “In a bid to ensure that we have wide acceptability and effective administration of the malaria vaccine, the government, through the federal ministry of health, must begin to educate the citizens on the malaria vaccine and also initiate risk communication programmes to help respond to any concerns citizens might have about the vaccine,” he added.
He also said that it was very pertinent for the government to strengthen the primary healthcare structures across the country in preparation for the vaccine, even as the continent awaits a scale-up production.
According to him, considering that Nigeria is a high burden country, the government must use this opportunity to make a good case for Nigeria to be prioritized in the distribution of the vaccine and possibly make financial commitments to support increased production before it becomes too late to participate.
However, Realnews reports that WHO had said that there were plans to make the vaccine available for African children, at a not-for-profit price covering the cost of manufacturing and just about five percent return to be reinvested in research and development of the second-generation malaria vaccines or vaccines of other neglected tropical diseases.
WHO also said that the vaccines will be distributed through the various already existing immunization programs established in primary healthcare systems of various countries.
– Oct. 15, 2021 @ 16:27 GMT |
A.I
Tags: malaria vaccine Odinaka Obeta Prof. Oyewale Tomori UNICEF WHO Zero Malaria Youth Champion
