EVI article featured in Guardian Global Health Resilience supplement
- EVI
- Jun 17
- 1 min read
European Vaccine Initiative (EVI) has contributed an article to the Guardian's Global Health Resilience supplement, on how a vaccine's value is only fully realised when the systems, evidence and strategies needed to deliver it equitably and effectively are in place.
17 June 2026
The piece, authored by EVI's Dr Irene Nkumama, Malaria Programme Manager, and Dr Elena Ambrosio, Senior Project Manager, makes the case for implementation research as an essential but often overlooked component of global health impact. Titled Beyond trials: Implementation research that strengthens health systems, the article argues that developing a safe and effective vaccine is only the starting point, and that ensuring it reaches the right people, in the right way, with its real-world performance rigorously documented, is equally critical.
Drawing on EVI's work in malaria vaccine implementation, the authors highlight the MVPE-CC consortium's case-control studies across Kenya, Malawi, and Ghana, which generated evidence that informed WHO SAGE and MPAG guidance in 2025 on the optimal dosing schedule for the RTS,S vaccine. The article also spotlights OPT-MVAC, a 14-country West and Central African consortium conducting locally-tailored implementation research at scale, and a new study in Guinea and Benin exploring seasonal vaccination strategies in high-burden settings.
