Federal Government of Nigeria has said there is high hope that the nation will get the R21/Matrix-M vaccine recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the prevention of malaria in children by mid-2024.
This is according to the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of NPHCDA, Dr Faisal Shuaib.
The WHO recommends the R21 malaria vaccine following advice from its Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation and the Malaria Policy Advisory Group.
The NPHCDA boss believes there is hope that Nigeria would get the R21 malaria vaccine by mid-2024.
According to Shuaib WHO has to prioritise Nigeria because it 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.
Shuaib assures his agency is working with Gavi, 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.
