RTS, S/AS01, which has already been administered to 1.7 Million children, will be distributed throughout 12 African countries.

Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Uganda will receive 18 million doses.

The rollout is part of WHO's Malaria Vaccine Implementation Programme (MVIP), which receives funding from GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, and Unitaid.

RTS, S/AS01 (Mosquirix), is a lyophilized vaccine given intramuscularly to children older than 5 years in a four-dose regimen.