Health official list challenges hinder birth dose vaccination efforts Kampala, Uganda | PATRICIA AKANKWATSA | Despite the introduction of the Hepatitis B (HBV) birth dose vaccine in 2023, public health officials acknowledge persistent challenges in achieving optimal immunisation coverage for new-borns. A major obstacle is the high number of births occurring …
Read More »Gavi launches preventive Ebola vaccine programme
Move is part of wide programme that involves routine multivalent meningitis, human rabies, and hepatitis B birth dose vaccination ANALYSIS | THE INDEPENDENT | In a historic step, preventive Ebola vaccination will become the norm in the highest-risk countries, courtesy of GAVI, the public-private partnership Vaccine Alliance that brings together developing …
Read More »Vaccine manufacturers asked to prioritize sensitization to gain trust
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Executive Director of the Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI), Prof. Pontiano Kaleebu, has urged vaccine manufacturers to disclose the side effects of the vaccines to the public. Kaleebu believes this is one of the avenues that can be exploited to offer transparency which is …
Read More »EU backs AU’s initiative for in-continent vaccine production
AU has prioritized vaccine manufacturing for up to 22 diseases NEWS ANALYSIS | RONALD MUSOKE | The European Union intends to support its partner, the African Union, in its ambitious goal of producing 60% of vaccines on the continent for African citizens by 2040, according to Jutta Urpilainen, the European Commissioner …
Read More »1.8 million Zambians get cholera vaccine
LUSAKA, Zambia | Xinhua | About 1.8 million Zambians in cholera hotspot areas have gotten the oral cholera vaccine as the exercise comes to a close, health authorities said on Saturday. Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo said in an update statement on the cholera situation that the vaccine was administered …
Read More »Africa is building vaccine manufacturing capacity
With a surge in funding, R&D and private sector investment, Africa is primed for a transformative leap towards vaccine autonomy. A recently announced US$1.8 billion shot in the arm puts vaccine self-sufficiency within reach. SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | Recent approval by the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi) of a US$1.8 …
Read More »Sh60 billion anti-tick vaccine production facility nears completion
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The construction of a sh60-billion anti-tick vaccine production facility at Nakyesasa in Nalukulongo, Wakiso District will be concluded in April 2023, according to the National Agricultural Research Organisation – NARO. In October 2022, NARO, officially commenced field trials of the anti-tick vaccine dubbed TicVac-U …
Read More »Gavi gives Africa’s vaccine project US$1 bn pledge
Local manufacturing of vaccines is Africa’s ‘second independence’ says Africa CDC boss Lusaka, Zambia | RONALD MUSOKE | The African Union’s desire to ramp-up vaccine manufacturing on the continent has been boosted by a commitment in principle by GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, to inject US$1 billion into the process. Dr. Jean …
Read More »TB vaccine a big deal
ANALYSIS | Charles Shey Wiysonge | The Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine for TB has been used for 100 years. It is largely effective for children under five, but less so in older people and can’t be used on patients who have certain medical conditions. Today we’re the closest we’ve ever been to …
Read More »Advancing Vaccine Manufacturing: African nations need to collaborate to boost pharmaceutical production
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Civil society organizations, government representatives, and the private sector convened at a high-level policy symposium in Kampala on September 27-28 to address the critical issue of pharmaceutical production and access in Africa. The symposium aimed to explore ways to increase local production, reduce dependence on …
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