Former President John Mahama has described as “heartwarming” to learn of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) approval of a malaria vaccine after years of trial.
The 2020 flag bearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), said in a Facebook comment on Thursday, October 7 2021 that “It is refreshing and promising to learn that our expression of interest in 2016 to the WHO and active participation in the Malaria vaccine pilot programme has led to the approval of the vaccine to be deployed in sub-Saharan Africa and other malaria-endemic regions”.
“I am elated at the prospect of vaccinating millions of African children who will be saved from avoidable deaths as a result of this scientific and public health breakthrough”.
Expressing his appreciation to the medical team that worked on the vaccine development, Mr. Mahama wrote, “Thanks to Dr Vasee Moorthy and his team at the World Health Organization who responded favourably to Ghana’s expression of interest in the malaria vaccine programme in 2016”.
He also congratulated WHO, Ghana’s Technical Working Group, the governments and people of Malawi and Kenya who joined in the successful pilot immunisation programme.
“As Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the WHO, said, this is, ‘a historic moment’”, Mr Mahama added.
The WHO is recommending widespread use of the RTS,S/AS01 (RTS,S) malaria vaccine among children in sub-Saharan Africa and in other regions with moderate to highP. falciparummalaria transmission.
The recommendation is based on results from an ongoing pilot programme in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi that has reached more than 800 000 children since 2019.
“This is a historic moment. The long-awaited malaria vaccine for children is a breakthrough for science, child health and malaria control,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Using this vaccine on top of existing tools to prevent malaria could save tens of thousands of young lives each year.”
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