South Sudan receives its first batch of a new vaccine for malaria from the WHO

By DENG MACHOL
Associated Press

JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — South Sudan has received its first batch of a new malaria vaccine from the World Health Organization, an important step in efforts to battle a disease that is the biggest killer of children in this African country. The more than 645,000 doses of the R21 malaria vaccine received on Friday will be distributed across 28 counties with the highest malaria burden. In 2022, South Sudan had an estimated 2.8 million cases and 6,680 deaths from malaria. It has one of the region’s highest rates of malaria incidence. South Sudan’s health minister said the new vaccine, alongside other preventive measures such as insecticide-treated bed nets and timely access to medical care, will be instrumental in a push to eliminate malaria.