After the Bell: How good news about malaria in Africa is dampened by the cult-like spell of Trump

Let’s start with the good news.

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Monday that it had recommended a new vaccine, R21/Matrix-M, for the prevention of malaria in children – the second malaria vaccine to win such approval. 

“Both vaccines are shown to be safe and effective in preventing malaria in children and, when implemented broadly, are expected to have high public health impact. Malaria, a mosquito-borne disease, places a particularly high burden on children in the African region, where nearly half a million children die from the disease each year,” the WHO said.

The RTS,S vaccine, recommended by the WHO in 2021, has limited supply that does not meet soaring demand. Adding R21 to the list of WHO-endorsed vaccines should provide enough supply “to benefit all children living in areas where malaria is a public health risk”.

“This second vaccine holds real potential to close the huge demand-and-supply gap,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa.

The R21 vaccine has been shown to reduce symptomatic malaria cases by 75%, has been safe in clinical trials, and is cost-effective at $2 to $4 a dose.

Much of the focus over the past couple of years has been on the various Covid vaccines. These have been game-changers, saving countless lives while allowing for the lifting of lockdown and related restrictions.

The malaria vaccines, along with other efforts to eradicate the disease, are also clearly game-changers.

Take, for example, AngloGold Ashanti’s anti-malaria programme in Ghana. The project is a recipient of finance from the Global Fund – a worldwide movement to defeat HIV, TB and malaria – the first time a private company has performed a lead role in a Global Fund grant in Africa.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Ghana first to approve Oxford’s malaria vaccine

Since inception in 2005, with an indoor spraying programme and the provision of bed nets to all homes – based on a detailed census and mapping of every household in the area – the project has slashed malaria rates by more than 90% in the region and now covers almost one million people. Work and school absenteeism have fallen by a similar percentage.

Aside from saving lives, this is a clear economic dividend on a continent bisected by the equator that historically has confronted many environmental and geographical challenges to development, including widespread diseases that have been eradicated elsewhere.

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