Nigeria has approved a new malaria vaccine developed by Oxford University scientists.
The announcement comes just days after Ghana became the world’s first country to approve the (R21) vaccine.
Mojisola Adeyeye, the head of Nigeria’s National Agency for Food and Drug Administration, stated that the vaccine would be used to prevent malaria in children aged five months to three years, the most vulnerable group.
The approval is unusual in that it comes before the final stage trial data for the vaccine, which is expected to be 80% effective.
Malaria is the leading cause of death in Nigeria.
Every year, the disease kills over 6,000 people worldwide, many of whom are children in Sub-Saharan Africa.
