The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, widely considered as the central instrument of protection for the right to health, recognizes the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
Despite this proclamation, our continent Africa and country Nigeria, sadly, continue to suffer from ailments that medical science has since consigned to the dustbin of history, often making life short, painful and brutish, with life expectancy comparatively short of the standard elsewhere.
A new and cheap malaria vaccine that can be produced on a massive scale has recently been developed. It has been recommended for use by the World Health Organization (WHO).
The vaccine has been developed by the University of Oxford and is only the second malaria vaccine to be developed.
It is almost two years to the day since the first vaccine – called RTS,S and developed by GSK – was backed by the WHO.
Director-General of the WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said it was a moment of “great pleasure”. “I used to dream of the day we would have a safe and effective vaccine against malaria, now we have two,” he said.
The WHO said the effectiveness of the two vaccines was “very similar” and there was no evidence one was better than the other. However, the key difference is the ability to manufacture the University of Oxford vaccine – called R21 – at scale.
Prof Sir Adrian Hill, director of the Jenner Institute in Oxford where R21 was developed, said: “The vaccine is easily deployable, cost effective and affordable, ready for distribution in areas where it is needed most, with the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives a year.”
Gareth Jenkins, from Malaria No More UK, said: “The reality is that malaria financing globally is far from where it needs to be and annual deaths from malaria rose during the pandemic and are still above pre-pandemic levels, so we cannot afford to be complacent as new tools are developed.”
Malaria is a major public health concern in Nigeria, with an estimated 68 million cases and 194,000 deaths due to the disease in 2021. Nigeria has the highest burden of malaria globally, accounting for nearly 27 percent of the global malaria burden. The risk of transmission exists throughout the country, all year round.
The economic burden of malaria in Nigeria, put at $1.6bn in the year 2022 alone, was anticipated to increase to about $2.8bn by 2030, according to former Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire.
This new vaccine presents new hope for Nigeria and Nigerians in terms of health, well-being and development across the board and so should be taken seriously by way of policy, cooperation and implementation.
There are already agreements in place to manufacture more than 100 million doses of the new vaccine a year.
It has taken more than a century of scientific effort to develop effective vaccines against malaria.
Nigeria already has a fairly effective immunization framework in place which renders vaccination against: BCG ( Bacilli Calmette Guerin)—at birth or as soon as possible after birth; OPV (Oral Polio Vaccine)—at birth and at 6, 10, and 14 weeks of age; DPT (Diphtheria, pertusis, tetanus)—at 6, 10, and 14 weeks of age; Hepatitis B—at birth, 6 and 14 weeks; and measles—at 9 months of age.
Some of the challenges to effectiveness of immunization in the country come by way of cultural resistance on account of unscientific beliefs and unfounded fears, as well as challenges of penetrating remote and hard-to-reach areas and motivation of health staff.
Whatever the case, the advent of this new vaccine is a huge opportunity for Nigeria and should be grasped with both hands, with seriousness and a strategic plan, so as to open the pathway to a better life for our unborn generations.
The various agencies involved in the immunization administration process should work in seamless cooperation and coordination for effective delivery.
