Recent news
June 2011
Dramatic decrease in meningitis A recorded in West Africa following new vaccine introduction
June 13, 2011 -- Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have reported the lowest number of confirmed meningitis A cases ever recorded during an epidemic season this year following the introduction of a new vaccine, the Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP) announced recently. MVP spearheaded the development of the vaccine, called MenAfriVac™. A new analysis published in the journal Health Affairs also shows that introducing this vaccine in seven highly endemic African countries could save as much as $300 million over a decade and prevent one million cases of the disease.
With the 2010-2011 epidemic season largely over, surveillance data compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO) show just four confirmed cases of meningitis A in Burkina Faso, the first country to introduce the vaccine nationwide. Three of the four cases occurred in individuals from neighboring Togo who crossed the border for medical care, and the fourth case was a citizen of Burkina Faso who had not received the new vaccine. No confirmed cases were reported in Mali, while four cases were reported in Niger, all in unvaccinated individuals. “The huge expectations that we had for this vaccine are now being fulfilled,” said Professor Adama Traoré, minister of health of Burkina Faso. “Our country has been suffering from repeated meningococcal A epidemics for several decades. Meningitis A cases are close to zero this year, which will enable us to divert resources to help combat other diseases and other types of epidemics.”
Planning is now under way for a new round of immunization campaigns in 2011-2012. Campaigns will be finalized in Mali and Niger, and new campaigns will begin in Cameroon, Chad, and Nigeria. Developed at a cost less than $0.50 per dose, this vaccine is a highly affordable solution to one of the region’s most pressing health threats. But a significant funding gap needs to be closed if the vaccine is to be rolled out in all 25 countries of the meningitis belt by 2016. The GAVI Alliance, a core supporter of the vaccine’s introduction, recently released $100 million for vaccine and operational costs for the campaigns in Cameroon, Chad, and Nigeria. An estimated $375 million is needed to protect target populations in other countries. See the press release below for more information.
