Nature: Vaccine candidates for poor nations are going to waste
David C. Kaslow, vice president for essential medicines at PATH, and colleagues

“…In our view, the main stakeholders must come together to define a new path for the sustainable development of vaccines that are socially justified but that have no business case, an uncertain one, or that require considerable public funding to reach the clinic. Participants should include funding agencies such as the Wellcome Trust, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the NIH; early-development partners such as PATH and the International Vaccine Institute in Seoul; vaccine manufacturers from wealthy and emerging economies; and organizations that recommend and procure vaccines for poor countries, such as the WHO and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. The first aim should be to assess all the candidates in the pipeline. … [Financial] schemes need to be expanded and rethought to give vaccine developers more certainty and upfront financial backing. … Stakeholders should define clear [regulatory] pathways. They should negotiate more alignment between the various organizations involved in planning, development, and oversight. Finally, they should identify what infrastructure and human capacity are needed to ensure that a reliable supply of vaccines can be provided long-term to the people who need them. Only with this kind of leadership will the global community secure vaccines for some of the world’s most debilitating diseases” (12/18).