Assessing alternative malaria and other routine vaccine schedules in Burkina Faso
The World Health Organization recommends two malaria vaccines—RTS,S and R21/Matrix M™—to protect children as part of a broader malaria control toolkit. These tools are saving lives where introduced in Africa; however, their vaccination schedule comprises four doses and includes new childhood vaccine visits outside of the regular childhood vaccine schedule—adding cost, delivery, and coverage challenges. Also, malaria vaccines are currently recommended for children five months of age and older, meaning that younger infants at risk of malaria remain without vaccine protection.
Alternative infant schedules for malaria and other routine vaccines may prevent more disease, ease delivery challenges to achieve coverage targets, and enhance health monitoring for infants—but these potential benefits have not yet been sufficiently studied.
This fact sheet describes a PATH-sponsored clinical study in Burkina Faso that is designed to identify an alternative schedule starting in early infancy that can align malaria and other routine vaccinations and maximize disease protection—potentially saving more lives in the future. The malaria vaccine used in the study is R21/Matrix M. The sites conducting the study in Burkina Faso are Groupe de Recherche Action en Santé (GRAS) in Banfora and Institut de Recherche en Science de la Santé (IRSS) in Houndé.
Publication date: June 2025
Available materials
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English
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French