Nigeria has been named among eight African countries involved in the clinical trial of the world’s first malaria treatment for newborns.
NAN reports that the infant-friendly artemether-lumefantrine
treatment was approved after clinical trials in Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Côte
d’Ivoire, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Uganda.
The formulation, which dissolves in breast milk and has a
sweet flavour, is the first of its kind for children weighing less than five
kilogrammes.
According to the report, Swiss regulators have already
cleared the drug, while Nigeria and the other participating countries are
expected to fast-track approvals under the Swiss agency’s marketing
authorisation for the global health products procedure.
Jean Kaseya, director-general (DG) of the Africa Centres for
Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), described the development as “a major
step forward in the fight against malaria”.
Ngashi Ngongo, principal advisor to the Africa CDC DG, said
the breakthrough demonstrated the continent’s capacity to drive health
innovations through collaboration, stressing that Nigeria’s role was key to the
trial’s success.
The Africa CDC said it would support countries to integrate
the treatment into health systems by expediting approvals, updating guidelines,
training health workers, and ensuring access in rural areas.
The drug was developed by Novartis in partnership with
Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) under the PAMAfrica consortium.
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