The Democratic Republic of Congo received on Thursday June 13 in Kinshasa a batch of 693,500 doses of the anti-malaria vaccine called R 21 Matrix-M to fight against malaria.
These doses are intended to vaccinate children aged 6 to 23 months against malaria, a disease that affects millions of people in the DRC and across the African continent.
Children under 5 years old represent practically 50% of malaria cases and nearly 70% of deaths due to this endemic in the DRC, according to the most recent data from the epidemiological surveillance system of the Ministry of Public Health, Hygiene and Social Welfare and the annual report of the National Malaria Control Program (PLNP).
According to the WHO, this vaccine has already been introduced in several countries on the continent such as Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Cameroon, Benin, Burkina Faso with the following results:
- Vaccination led to a 13% reduction in the number of deaths from all causes among children old enough to be vaccinated.
- Malaria vaccination reduced the number of malaria cases by more than half in the 12 months following administration of the first three doses. A fourth dose helps prolong protection.
- Malaria vaccination reduces the number of times a child gets malaria.
- A 22% reduction in hospitalizations for severe malaria was observed.
- The use of the anti-malaria vaccine has not reduced the use of prevention methods that have proven their effectiveness (insecticide-treated mosquito nets, for example) nor the adoption of other childhood vaccines or the use of care in the event of fever.
- Results are optimal when malaria vaccination is combined with a set of malaria control interventions adapted to the local context.
- The safety of the vaccine was demonstrated after more than six million doses of vaccine were administered to more than two million children.
Vaccine
The introduction of R21/Matrix-M is expected to significantly strengthen the DRC’s efforts to protect this vulnerable age group.
“This vaccine is a real shield for our children. By vaccinating children under 5, we are not only saving individual lives, but we are safeguarding our future. Each child protected is a step towards eradicating the scourge of malaria. This vaccine is a shield that will protect our children against the permanent threat of this disease”affirmed the WHO Representative in the DRC, Dr Boureima Hama Sambo.
The R21/Matrix-M vaccine is designed to target the sporozoite stage of plasmodium, which is transmitted to humans through mosquito bites. It is during this initial phase that the vaccine is most effective, because it fights the few sporozoites, ranging from 10 to 100, that enter the bloodstream before the parasite can multiply, explains the WHO.
