Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals

9 January 2012

Report of SAGE November 2011 meeting published

UN Foundation

WHO's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on immunization recommended, at its November 2011 meeting, that to eradicate polio there must be accountability and consequences at all levels for individuals, institutions and governments who fail to deliver on their mandates. SAGE stated unequivocally that the risk of failure to finish global polio eradication constitutes a programmatic emergency of global proportions for public health and is not acceptable under any circumstances. Moreover, the country reports produced by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative Independent Monitoring Board must identify the root causes why some infected countries are failing to interrupt transmission and hold appropriate individuals, agencies and authorities responsible. Failure, SAGE warned, would lead to a resurgence of the disease and would be seen as the most expensive public health failure in history.

18 November 2011

Countries with high or intermediate endemic rates of meningococcal disease encouraged to introduce large scale vaccination programmes

In a position paper, published in the Weekly Epidemiological Record today, WHO recommends that countries with high or intermediate endemic rates of meningococcal disease and countries with frequent epidemics introduce large scale vaccination programmes, using meningococcal conjugate vaccines. In these countries, the meningococcal vaccine may be administered through routine immunization programmes and supplementary immunization activities, for example during disease outbreaks.

19 October 2011

Promising results from clinical trial of advanced malaria vaccine candidate

First results from a large-scale phase 3 clinical trial of the most advanced malaria vaccine candidate, RTS,S/AS01, announced at the Global Malaria Forum in Seattle, show a 55% reduction in the frequency of malaria episodes during the 12 months of follow-up in children 5-17 months of age at first immunization. "Malaria has never had a vaccine get this far. If licensed, it would be the very first human vaccine against a parasitic disease", said the WHO Director-General, Dr Margaret Chan, during her keynote address to participants at the 3-day Forum, a major event for malaria experts across the world.

20 September 2011

Sanofi Pasteur donates vaccine strain used for polio eradication to WHO

P. Albouy

The World Health Organization and Sanofi Pasteur today celebrated the donation by Sanofi Pasteur to WHO of a vaccine seed-strain used for the production of oral polio vaccine (OPV). The type 3 polio seed-strain is an original viral seed used to produce large quantities of OPV against type 3 poliovirus.


Our areas of work

Quality and standards

Ensuring adherence of vaccines, other biological products and immunization equipment to international norms and standards

Financing

Immunization financing analyses, country profiles, indicators and tools

Supply and procurement

Developing procedures to ensure efficient supply and procurement of vaccines and immunization equipment to countries

Service delivery and accelerated disease control

Developing immunization systems and policies to ensure availability of vaccines to everyone in need of them.

Research and development

Supporting and facilitating the development, clincial evaluation and access to safe, effective and affordable vaccines

Safety

Providing global policies and best practices for vaccine and immunization safety

Surveillance, assessment and monitoring

Monitoring and assessing the impact of strategies and activities for reducing morbidity and mortality as a result of vaccine-preventable diseases

New and under-utilized vaccines

Decision-making and key issues surrounding the use and introduction of new vaccines