In the last two days, several significant developments regarding malaria and malaria vaccines have been reported. In Angola, the Ministry of Health has announced preparations to introduce a malaria vaccine in 2026. Health Minister Silvia Lutucuta, speaking to Angola Press, described the vaccine as a highly effective and safe tool. While she did not specify whether the country would use RTS,S (Mosquirix) or R21/Matrix-M, both approved by the World Health Organization, she emphasized their targeting of children through a four-dose regimen. Angola has recently seen a drop in malaria cases, falling from about 10 million in 2024 to 6.9 million in the first half of 2025, a decrease primarily attributed to improved early detection and treatment. Minister Lutucuta also stressed that successful control of malaria requires more than healthcare interventions, noting the influence of sanitation and health education. The Angolan government is simultaneously strengthening epidemiological surveillance and laboratory capacity, aiming to expand reference networks to 12 provinces by next year, alongside the establishment of Public Health Emergency Operations Centers expected in early 2026, all to enhance emergency response.

Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, the University of Oxford and ReciBioPharm Advanced Bio have expanded their collaboration to manufacture two blood-stage malaria vaccine candidates, R78C and RH5.1, aiming for phase I/II clinical trials. Both candidates are products of Oxford’s Draper Lab, which has conducted 25 proof-of-concept trials for malaria vaccines. According to The Medicine Maker, the candidates have shown strong preclinical results and robust safety profiles. One candidate has completed a phase I trial with high safety and the ability to generate functional antibodies, leading to continued evaluation in a phase IIb field trial in Africa, which so far indicates moderate efficacy and no serious adverse events. Both candidates will now scale up production for further clinical evaluation under Good Manufacturing Practice conditions, with the goal of generating robust data by 2028.

Oxford’s broader efforts include ten ongoing malaria vaccine studies using the ExpreS2ion platform, with six studies currently in phase I trials focused on safety, as noted by FirstWord Pharma. These ambitious efforts reflect the ongoing global concern as the most recent World Health Organization report indicated 249 million cases and 608,000 deaths due to malaria in 2022, with children under five remaining the most vulnerable group.

Challenges persist in developing a broadly effective malaria vaccine due to the parasite’s complex life cycle and surface protein changes, making it a constantly moving immune target. Experts at ReciBioPharm highlight that malaria vaccine development necessitates a multi-antigen or multi-stage strategy, which complicates testing and manufacturing compared to vaccines targeting viruses. The global interest in vaccine development surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, spurring advances in platforms like mRNA and rapid manufacturing technologies. However, experts assert that continuing innovation in malaria vaccines is a scientific and moral imperative, given the disease’s heavy toll, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The hope is that a second-generation, more effective vaccine could transform global malaria control, building on the incremental progress made with first-generation products like RTS,S and R21/Matrix-M.

This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI