The strategic advisory group of experts on immunization (SAGE) meeting was held on 25-27 April 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland. A total of 9 sessions were held during the 3-day meeting. First, the progress and challenges toward goals of global vaccine action plan by WHO and updates on vaccine safety and regulatory standards for vaccines by global advisory committees were presented.
Subsequently, updates and new recommendations on polio vaccine, killed whole-cell oral cholera vaccine, ebola candidate vaccines, and diphtheria outbreaks & availability of diphtheria anti-toxin were discussed as main sessions. Regarding the current global inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) supply shortage, SAGE recommended 2 fractional IPV doses in national routine immunization schedule where it is practical and feasible. In addition, SAGE recommended that after global OPV withdrawal, countries should include at least two doses of IPV in their routine immunization schedule, the first at or after 14 weeks and the second dose ≥ 4 months after the first dose; countries without poliovirus essential facilities(PEFs) should maintain IPV at least 10 years after global OPV withdrawal and countries with PEFs should continue to use IPV as long as mandated by the global action plan to minimize poliovirus facility-associated risk. In terms of whole-cell killed oral cholera vaccine, SAGE recommended that given the current available evidence, these vaccines should be used with other cholera prevention and control strategies in areas with endemic cholera, in humanitarian crisis with high risk of cholera and during cholera outbreaks. SAGE also presented updates on ebola candidate vaccines and discussed the way of vaccine delivery. SAGE recommended that the rVSVΔG-ZEBOV vaccine should be promptly deployed under the expanded access framework with the ring vaccination strategy if an ebola virus disease outbreak occur before any candidate vaccine is licensed.
Lastly, for accelerated implementation of global vaccine action plan, SAGE discussed the function and competency of national immunization programme management, the strengthening of national immunization technical advisory groups and the engagement of private providers with the national immunization programme.