African health ministers commit themselves to introduce MenAfriVac--the meningococcal A conjugate vaccine developed through the Meningitis Vaccine Project.
On September 4, 2008, health ministers from countries of the African meningitis belt committed themselves to introduce the new conjugate vaccine which is designed to prevent periodic epidemics of the deadly disease in these countries.
Read the WHO press release.

Hopes for a new meningitis vaccine.
From March 26 to April 4, Leslie Roberts, an award-winning news editor and reporter from Science, traveled to Africa and Europe to research the epidemiology of meningitis and the science of vaccine development.
Read the full article.

Kill or Cure documentary film on meningococcal meningitis.
The film is now available for viewing/downloading. Click here for additional information.

Press release on Phase 2 results
Improved meningitis vaccine for Africa could signal end to deadly scourge. Read the press release.

How public-private partnerships handle intellectual property (IP).
The UK Centre for the Management of Intellectual Property in Health Research and Development has published a handbook of best practices for IP management in health. Read about the PATH experience and the MVP case study.  

Interview with Professor Rasmata Ouédraogo.
Professor Rasmata Ouédraogo, a member of the Project Advisory Group (PAG) and an expert in bacteriology, speaks on the importance of disease surveillance and how to consolidate acceptance of the new meningococcal conjugate vaccine in Africa. Read the interview.

Meningitis outbreaks in four African countries.
Two months into the dry season in the African meningitis belt, 15,595 cases of meningitis— including 1,670 deaths—have been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO). Samples obtained from patients indicate that these cases are caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A, the most common type of meningitis in Africa. Already around 1.5 million people in affected counties have been targeted in mass vaccination campaigns organized and supported by national authorities, WHO, Médecins sans Frontières, and other international partners. See the WHO press release of 16 March 2007.

Significant increase in outbreaks of meningitis across the African meningitis belt in 2006.
The World Health Organization's Weekly Epidemiological Record of March 9, 2007, explains why this is a cause for concern. Read the article.

Interview with Professor Richard Adegbola.
Professor Richard Adegbola, a member of the Project Advisory Group (PAG) and an expert in medical biology and pneumococcal disease explains how the MVP approach could be used for developing other meningitis vaccines for Africa. Read the interview.

Press release on Phase 1 results.
The Meningitis Vaccine Project and Serum Institute of India Limited report successful Phase I clinical trial of new vaccine. View the press release.

Interview with Professor Ogobara Doumbo.
Professor Ogobara Doumbo, a member of the Project Advisory Group (PAG), explains how his grandfather, a traditional healer in the Dogon country in Mali taught him the ethics of medicine and how this philosophy influences his everyday work and his role as MVP adviser. Read the interview.

Informal Consultation on Meningococcal Carriage Studies in Africa.
The meeting took place in Geneva in September 2005, and a report is now available. View the report.

Interview with Professor Francis Nkrumah.
Professor Francis Nkrumah, chairman of the Project Advisory Group that guides MVP on its vaccine introduction strategy, speaks about bringing a new meningococcal vaccine to Africa. Read the interview.

Enhanced surveillance of epidemic meningococcal meningitis in Africa.
The World Health Organization's Weekly Epidemiological Record of September 16, 2005, is entirely devoted to "Enhanced surveillance of epidemic meningococcal meningitis in Africa," an activity that the Meningitis Vaccine Project has been supporting for several years. Read the three-year experience report.

"Above all, the [MVP] vaccine has to be priced low enough so as to
make it affordable for poorer countries. That dream vaccine to tame
the dreaded infection is all set to turn into reality – thanks to a unique
consortium of drug developers at three corners of the globe."
Read Dr. Sanjit Bagchi's article on Science in Africa's web site.

Meningitis and the Meningitis Vaccine Project: The story to date.
For a quick overview of the history of meningitis, the search for a vaccine,
and MVP's progress, visit our timeline.

Since 2001 MVP has been collaborating with the World Health
Organization to strengthen surveillance in nine countries of the
meningitis belt. View the latest epidemiological reports on the WHO
Communicable Disease Surveillance & Response (CSR) web site.

Defeating the Scourge of Meningococcal Disease in Africa
In this essay, project director Dr. F. Marc LaForce shares his view of the
Meningitis Vaccine Project.

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