1. Home
  2. East Africa
  3. Kenya
  • News

AIDS vaccine fails despite being safe

Two vaccines developed by Kenya's AIDS Vaccine Initiative (KAVI) have proved unsuccessful during recent clinical trials.

According to the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), which worked closely with KAVI during the trials, the vaccines, known as DNA and MVA, failed to elicit the expected immune response.

Dr Chrispin Kambili, IAVI's regional medical director in Kenya, said preliminary data from trials conducted in Kenya, Uganda and the UK showed responses of short duration in only a quarter of the 205 volunteers who participated. According to set standards, a response in at least 60 percent of the volunteers would have been considered successful.

However, Kambili told a local newspaper, The East African Standard, that initial trials had shown the vaccines were safe, as no significant side effects were reported.


This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

Share this article

Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

Become a member of The New Humanitarian

Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

Join