Terms of Reference

1. To analyse the results of the most recent research and M&E activities implemented during OCV campaigns since the 2010 WHO recommendation with a particular focus on communities’ acceptability, safety of OCV, vaccine effectiveness in various settings, cost analysis, impact on cholera transmission in endemic and epidemic settings
2. To review evidence and propose recommendations for use of OCV in pregnant and lactating women
3. To review evidence and propose recommendations for use of OCV in travelers
4. To review evidence and propose updated recommendations for vaccination strategies (Controlled Temperature Chain, single dose, self-administration, administration with other vaccines, ring vaccination)
5. To critically discuss the 2010 WHO recommendations on OCV use and propose potential adjustments/revisions for endemic settings (“hotspots”), during humanitarian emergencies and during outbreaks
6. To consider the perspectives of development of OCV and discuss the potential impact on the future of cholera control

Composition

SAGE Members

• Alejandro Cravioto, (Chair of Working Group), Chief Scientific Officer, Global Evaluative Sciences, Inc., in Seattle, Washington, USA from 2015 to June 2016. Is now affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
• Jaleela Sayed Jawad, Head of the immunization group, Ministry of Health, Kingdom of Bahrain.

Experts

• Dang Duc Anh, Director, National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Hanoi, Vietnam
• Asma Yaroh Gali, General Director of Ministry of Public Health and Ambassador for the Campaign on Accelerated Reduction of Maternal Mortality in Africa, Niamey, Niger
• Rebecca Grais, Director Research, Epicentre, Paris, France
• Louise Ivers, Associate Professor, Division of Global Health Equity, Harvard Medical School Boston, USA
• Francis Javier Alcalde Luquero, Associate Scientist, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA
• Firdausi Qadri, Director, Centre for Vaccine Sciences, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh
• Cynthia Sema, Head of Department, National Institute of Health Ministry of Health, Maputo, Mozambique
• Dipika Sur, previously National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Kolkata, India
• Thomas Wierzba, Enteric Vaccine Initiative Vaccine Development Global Program, PATH, Washington, USA

WHO Secretariat

• Dominique Legros (Main focal point)
• Adwoa Bentsi-Enchill

Declaration of interests

All members completed a declaration of interests form. One member reported relevant interests summarized below:

Thomas Wierzba

• His institution, the International Vaccine Institute (IV) received until 2014 a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF). His position as head of the IVI Cholera program, was in part funded through this grant. This interest was assessed as personal, specific and financially significant*.
• His institution received until 2014 a research grant from BMG to support Cholera vaccine development. This interest was assessed as personal, specific and financially significant*.

* According to WHO's Guidelines for Declaration of Interests (WHO expert), an interest is considered "personal" if it generates financial or non-financial gain to the expert, such as consulting income or a patent. "Specificity" states whether the declared interest is a subject matter of the meeting or work to be undertaken. An interest has "financial significance" if the honoraria, consultancy fee or other received funding, including those received by expert's organization, from any single vaccine manufacturer or other vaccine-related company exceeds 5,000 USD in a calendar year. Likewise, a shareholding in any one vaccine manufacturer or other vaccine-related company in excess of 1,000 USD would also constitute a “significant shareholding”. Funding going to the SAGE member’s research unit needs to be declared. As per WHO assessment of conflicts of interests, “Institution” relates only to the expert’s research/or work unit, as subdivision of the department.