Bharat Biotech to Cut Mosqivac Price 40% in Gavi-Backed UNICEF Pact

Bharat Biotech International said on Friday that the price of its malaria vaccine Mosqivac will fall by about 40% under an agreement executed by UNICEF and financially backed by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

The agreement, enabled by an advance payment from the International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm), will reduce the vaccine’s price to € 5.50 per dose from the current price of € 9.30.

Lower price expected by early 2027

The new price is expected to take effect by early 2027, Bharat Biotech said while announcing the agreement on equitable pricing for the vaccine.

The company said the arrangement is part of sustained efforts to create a more sustainable and competitive malaria vaccine market.

The price reduction is expected to generate around $50 million in savings for child immunisation programmes between 2027 and 2029, according to Bharat Biotech.

The company also said the savings could allow up to one million more children to receive the full four-dose course of the vaccine.

The agreement therefore links the lower per-dose price to both programme savings and wider access to malaria vaccination.

Vaccine supply expanded after WHO recommendation

RTS,S/AS01 was developed by GSK, PATH and partners and is manufactured by Bharat Biotech under the Mosqivac brand.

It became the first malaria vaccine to be recommended by the WHO in 2021.

Since then, GSK and Bharat Biotech have invested $200 million in new, higher-output manufacturing facilities, product development and technology transfer.

The investment was aimed at expanding and strengthening supply while lowering costs, according to the source.

Bharat Biotech Executive Chairman Krishna Ella said, “The Gavi, UNICEF deal is a far-reaching commitment to expand malaria vaccination... As partners in global public health, we have invested significantly to expand supply, strengthen manufacturing and support sustainable, affordable access to malaria vaccines.”

GSK’s Chief Global Health Officer Harmony P. Garges said, “at a time when global health resources are under increasing pressure, both for international organisations and for countries, partnership matters more than ever.”

She added, “This deal with Gavi, UNICEF further demonstrates how close collaboration across the global health landscape can help deliver real impact for children most at risk of malaria.”

Demand has exceeded initial forecasts

Demand for malaria vaccines has exceeded initial forecasts since rollout began in 2024.

UNICEF has procured and delivered more than 74 million doses to date.

The Gavi-funded malaria programme is now part of routine immunisation in 25 African countries.

Those countries bear more than 70 per cent of the global malaria burden, according to the source.

A full four-dose immunisation course of RTS,S/AS01 reduces malaria cases by about 75 per cent when administered seasonally in areas with high seasonal transmission.

Published - October 24, 2026 12:01 am IST

Source: The Hindu