The reliance on big pharma alone to develop new vaccines is changing with the emergence of public–private partnerships. These partnerships, which engage public health institutions, donor agencies

and academia, as well as the pharmaceutical industry, have the potential to create a new era for vaccine development. The PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative is a successful demonstration of a partnership between an NGO, industry, academia, donors and government. It encompasses the development check details of RTS,S malaria vaccine candidates, translational research and demonstration projects. The vaccine investment strategy that has been undertaken by GAVI to evaluate the feasibility and cost effectiveness of introducing malaria vaccine within the next 5 years gives the partnering pharmaceutical companies an indication of the kind of advance market commitment that can be generated through GAVI support. Another example

of a successful partnership is the Meningitis Vaccine Project that involved WHO and PATH with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Not only did the scientists develop an effective and safe MenA conjugate vaccine, but the commitment of African governments within the meningitis belt to roll out the vaccine resulted in a dramatic reduction of Group A meningitis Modulators infections to almost negligible levels within a three year period. With Tenofovir their confidence boosted by this success, the countries involved are now aiming to eliminate Group A meningitis Thalidomide infection across the Meningitis Belt. The GVAP calls for the use of a new model to assist decision-makers in prioritising investments in new vaccine; the model is based on health, economic, demographic,

programmatic, and social impact criteria as well as scientific, technical and business opportunities. The data presented to the WHO’s STI Vaccine Consultation critically evaluated the potential for the development of vaccines to prevent infection from five common STI pathogens, namely herpes simplex virus, Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Treponema pallidum, or Trichomonas vaginitis and/or the diseases they cause. The data unequivocally showed that development of vaccines to prevent all five infections could be justified using the GVAP criteria. Significant scientific advances have been made towards the development of vaccines for these five infections, development in herpes and chlamydial vaccine being the most advanced. Furthermore, the pharmaceutical industry has demonstrated interest in investing in the field.