Roadmap Factsheet

Download the formatted factsheet (PDF 47 KB) Download Acrobat Reader

Accelerating Development of a Malaria Vaccine

An Urgent Need
Malaria exacts an enormous toll on the public and economic health of developing countries. Even with existing interventions, malaria takes the lives of over one million people each year, and 300 to 500 million people suffer from the disease. A malaria vaccine could reduce infection and produce a dramatic and sustained public health benefit by preventing disease. Although impressive advances have been made in malaria vaccine research, fresh perspectives, improved coordination, new collaborations, and increased efficiency can further accelerate development of a viable vaccine.

A Novel Approach
Technology roadmaps help to focus technology investments through a collaborative, knowledge-based process. A Malaria Vaccine Technology Roadmap offers a new way of looking at the issues to better focus resources and accelerate progress. It provides a coherent framework for defining critical technology needs, identifying priorities, and aligning future activities with clear strategic goals. The Roadmap can identify multiple technology pathways to a viable malaria vaccine and facilitate partnerships to tackle complex challenges.

The Right Time for a Global Effort
Developing a vaccine against a complex, multi-stage parasite is a formidable challenge - yet a solution appears within our grasp. Promising scientific advances, rising funding levels, and heightened awareness of malaria have increased global commitment to develop an effective malaria vaccine as soon as possible. The time is right for the public health community to develop a Malaria Vaccine Technology Roadmap.

Scientists, donors, product development experts, and public health leaders came together to make this process a success. The nine-month effort will document the shared vision of the global malaria community and build on the insights and experiences of diverse leaders. The Roadmap will reflect the consensus of all of its stakeholders.

Three Key Steps to Roadmap Development
The Malaria Vaccine Technology Roadmap process brought together public- and private-sector experts who defined the complex scientific and technical challenges of vaccine development and identified promising technology pathways to accomplish desired goals. Key inputs were sought through three main steps.

Vision Meeting: Leaders from the scientific community created a shared vision that articulates long-term goals and performance targets. They were challenged to define strong strategic goals that will drive innovation and cooperation among discrete research and development (R&D) efforts. These leaders also identified the "big questions" that must be answered to advance malaria vaccine development.

Roadmap Meeting: Leading scientists, health professionals, and industry representatives convened to target the barriers to vaccine development. These diverse experts identified critical gaps in R&D and defined a full agenda of prioritized research and supporting activities to accelerate vaccine development. The meeting produced a draft roadmap for subsequent review and vetting by the wider malaria vaccine community.

Stakeholder Meetings: For the Roadmap to be successful, it must be embraced by the broadest possible cross-section of the malaria vaccine community. To generate such support, two stakeholder meetings were held in Bethesda, Maryland, and Durban, South Africa. At these meetings, participants heard presentations on draft roadmap results and were asked to offer their thoughts, perspectives, and recommendations. The results of these meetings were combined with the draft roadmap materials to create a Malaria Vaccine Technology Roadmap.

Donor Summit: A well-informed donor community is essential to accelerating the malaria vaccine development process. A Donor Summit will be held to enable leading donors to broaden their understanding of the malaria community's vision and roadmap. Donors will define their anticipated roles in support of roadmap implementation and discuss opportunities for coordination or partnership.

Global Ownership
The Malaria Vaccine Technology Roadmap reflects global views and is intended to serve as a "living" common blueprint for the entire global malaria community. It provides a framework that maps malaria vaccine challenges and end points and helps organize cooperative action. The Roadmap presents new opportunities for donors and researchers to step forward and lead efforts to implement the defined pathways and expedite progress toward a viable vaccine.