Through the WHO-coordinated Malaria Vaccine Implementation Programme (MVIP), launched in 2019, more than 800 000 children have received at least 1 dose of the RTS,S vaccine in selected areas of 3 African countries. RTS,S is, to date, the only malaria vaccine to complete a Phase 3 clinical trial and receive a positive scientific opinion from the European Medicines Agency, a stringent regulatory authority.On 6 October 2021, it became the first malaria vaccine recommended by WHO for broad use among young children in Africa and in other areas with moderate to high transmission of P. falciparum malaria.

In the session on 18 October, WHO and partners will share 2 years of data from the MVIP and explore next steps for the use of the RTS,S vaccine as part of the broader malaria control toolkit. 

RTS,S is in many respects a pathfinder for other malaria vaccines. This session will also take stock of the latest advances in malaria vaccine research and development, providing updates on the leading vaccine candidates currently in the pipeline and on new initiatives to evaluate and produce vaccines in Africa.

Speakers and agenda

Co-chairs

• Dr Benido Impouma, Director, Universal Health Coverage: Communicable and Noncommunicable Diseases, WHO Regional Office for Africa, Congo
• Professor Rose Leke, Professor of Immunology and Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé, Cameroon
• Mrs Inmaculada Peñas-Jiménez, EDCTP Policy Officer, European Commission, Brussels, Belgium

Welcome and introductions by the co-chairs

Overview of the global malaria situation

• Dr Pedro Alonso, Director, WHO Global Malaria Programme, Switzerland

RTS,S – the first malaria vaccine for use in African children

• Dr Kwaku Poku Asante, Director, Kintampo Health Research Center, Ghana
• Dr Mary Hamel, Team Lead, Malaria Vaccines, WHO department of Immunization Vaccines and Biologicals, Switzerland
• Dr Patricia Njuguna, Medical Officer, WHO Global Malaria Programme, Kenya
• Dr Abdisalan Noor, Team Lead, Strategic Information for Response Unit, WHO Global Malaria Programme, Switzerland

Other vaccines and new initiatives

• Professor Adrian Hill, Director, Jenner Institute, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
• Dr Stephen L. Hoffman, CEO of Sanaria Inc, United States of America
• Dr Özlem Türeci, Chief Medical Officer, BioNTech SE, Germany