Nigeria tasked on cost effectiveness of malaria, meningitis vaccines

Some experts in the health sector have harped on the need to ascertain the cost effectiveness of key vaccines in the country. They said the utilisation of evidence in the selection and deployment of key vaccines such as malaria, measles and meningitis vaccines was crucial for informed decisions making and effective health services delivery They […]

Some experts in the health sector have harped on the need to ascertain the cost effectiveness of key vaccines in the country.

They said the utilisation of evidence in the selection and deployment of key vaccines such as malaria, measles and meningitis vaccines was crucial for informed decisions making and effective health services delivery

They made the call in Abuja during a stakeholders engagement workshop organised by the Health Policy Research Group (HPRG) and other partners.

Prof Obinna Onwujekwe, Coordinator of Health Policy Research Group, University of Nigeria, Enugu campus, said cost effectiveness is key to making economic decisions, adding that the country was yet to ascertain the cost effectiveness of the malaria vaccine, which would soon be introduced into the country as well as the Men5CV meningitis vaccine which has only been administered in Nigeria.

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He said experts were working on a multi- country study in Nigeria, Zambia and Kenya, that will create a framework on evidence and practice that can be applied for vaccines, and diseases among others.

He said, “Our study is not just cost effectiveness but the budget impact of the vaccines. How does it affect our budget?  Is it such that it will affect other things? If it is cost effective then they should invest in it.”

He said a key aspect of the research is getting stakeholders to be aware and to utilize the research findings as researchers have conducted studies in the past without anyone utilising them.

Prof  Abdul Aguye, Chairman, Nigeria Immunisation Technical Advisory Group (NGI-TAG of the national primary health care agency ( NPHCDA) said the  country has a high disease burden, and that prioritizing some of the vaccines based on their cost effectiveness would go a long way  to mitigate the effects of the diseases on the population.

Dr Mariya Mukhtar-Yola, a consultant pediatrician, and representative of the West African College of Physicians, said cost effectiveness does not just mean spending money to buy vaccines but also vaccines that would yield results in the community.

She said that was why it is important to generate evidence that will guide policy and decision making.