“Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has completed the first full round of R21 malaria vaccine in Ethiopia, and the first ever completed in a refugee camp globally. In Kule refugee camp, in Gambella region, home to more than 55,000 South Sudanese refugees, 2,100 children under five received their fourth and final dose in November 2025.

‘This is the first time the R21 vaccine has been fully implemented in Ethiopia, and one of the earliest comprehensive rollouts on the African continent. It is also the first full vaccination round carried out in a refugee camp anywhere in the world.’ …

In 2024, malaria transmission in the camp reached the highest level in five years. In response, MSF introduced the R21 vaccine in August as part of an expanded prevention package…

In the period after the first vaccination campaign and other preventive measures, Kule hospital saw close to 50 percent fewer malaria-related deaths in 2025 compared to 2024. Where multiple factors could have had an impact on this significant decrease, it is highly likely the efforts carried out by the medical teams in the camp played a key role in this reduction.”

From Doctors Without Borders.