2010 Malaria Vaccine Advocacy Fellowship

July 6–8, 2010 Accra, Ghana

Nine scientists from five African countries attended MVI’s fifth Malaria Vaccine Advocacy Fellowship (MVAF) program, held this year in Accra, Ghana. The program, funded by a grant from the ExxonMobil Foundation, provides researchers and others in the malaria vaccine field with the skills necessary to effectively engage media and policymakers around vaccine development and introduction in sub-Saharan Africa. This year’s scientists came from Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and Zambia.

Dr. Antoinette Ba-Nguz, MVI’s Senior Program Officer for Africa, says of MVAF fellows: “Owing to their in-depth knowledge of the socio-political landscape of their countries and high standing within the malaria field, the fellows are ideally placed to serve as a bridge between what is happening in the field and decision-making processes in the policy arena. As decisions are made regarding malaria control strategies over the next number of years, the fellows should be an invaluable  resource in  advocacy to address the unique needs and challenges of their respective countries  for malaria vaccine  introduction.”

Once they have completed the workshop, the fellows finalize their own advocacy plans and receive technical assistance from MVI for implementation. This year, the 2010 fellows also spent a day with a small group of fellows from previous years, during which they agreed to establish a more formal network and to undertake joint advocacy activities. As a first step, they worked on a draft declaration for endorsement by African scientists and others working in the malaria field that calls on policymakers to begin laying the groundwork for malaria vaccine introduction in the region. Fellows also developed a press release about their deliberations that was distributed to journalists in their home countries.

The potential impact of the MVAF program is already visible in the activities of previous year fellows. In Nigeria, for example, 2009 fellow Dr. George Ademowo helped to organize key meetings with Ministry of Health and other stakeholders that will culminate later this year in a national stakeholders’ forum to discuss malaria vaccines.

MVI has trained 43 fellows since the program's inception in 2006. (Read more about the program and about last year's fellows Egwang and Halidou here.)