Along with our colleagues from Malaria No More UK, GSK, Jenner Institute and Medicines for Malaria Venture, IVCC is proud to have contributed to a letter in the New Statesman, which sets out how the UK can end malaria & help save millions of lives.

The piece highlights how maintaining momentum is a challenge in the face of a storm of competing global priorities and health challenges. But advances in game-changing new tools such as next-generation insecticide treated nets (ITNs) and malaria vaccines mean malaria can and will be consigned to the history books in our lifetimes .

For the greatest impact, interventions must be combined with other interventions as part of a toolbox approach. Dual active ingredient ITNs, for example, adapted to overcome mosquito resistance, have protected more than 60 million people and are one of a number of ways of reducing the impact of mosquitos themselves.

Read the full op-ed here: https://www.newstatesman.com/spotlight/healthcare/public-health/2024/04/uk-scientists-malaria-disease-public-health-malaria-no-more

An opportunity has arisen for a Project Officer to join the IVCC team in Liverpool. The successful candidate will work closely with IVCC project managers, supporting project management activities to ensure delivery of variables in line with project timescales and budget constraints.

This vacancy is open to candidates with the following attributes and skills:

• BSc or equivalent in a scientific discipline such as biology, entomology or chemistry
• Experience of project coordination, such as organising meetings, information management, project planning and contract management
• Experience of working collaboratively with stakeholders or partners
• A well organised and structured approach to work and information management
• Ability to work in a team environment and contribute to group activities including participation in meetings, workshops, events and presentations
• Previous experience of projects within a vector control environment, or experience working in sub-Saharan Africa would be highly advantageous, but this is not essential

(For a full list of essential and desirable criteria please refer to the job description and person specification)

In return we offer:

• A salary of £37,099 – £42,978 depending on experience
• 30 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, and additional Christmas closure days

IVCC is the only Product Development Partnership (PDP) working in vector control, which is a key part of the global fight against malaria, a disease which affects some of the most vulnerable communities in the world.

IVCC partners with third party organisations (industry and academic) to support the development of new vector control products, which will ultimately save lives and increase prosperity for some of the poorest communities in the world, which is the vision IVCC strives for.

Each project has a dedicated internal project manager (PM) who ensures that projects are running smoothly and achieving the desired outcomes. An opportunity has arisen for a Project Officer to join the team in Liverpool, who will work closely with the project manager, supporting project management activities to ensure delivery and management of variables in line with project timescales and budget constraints.

This is a fantastic opportunity for candidates looking to build upon their project coordination experience, with a view to developing into a project management role in the future.

For full details about this opportunity and how to apply, https://app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Careers/CareersPage.aspx?e=LMo8nnTwYNYk-3VilDKipOuu0-bGh9y-xfEkuHvuz2l9NOoVEzwNoxPk4_fZ-9owFhH5grmxzys&iframe=True&iframe=false follow the link to the full job advert on the LSTM website.

Applications close on Wednesday, 31st July at 23:59.

We seek to attract and recruit people who reflect the diversity across our communities, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity, nationality, faith or belief, social background, age and disability. IVCC selects candidates based on skills, qualifications, and experience.

We welcome conversations about flexible working; and applications from those returning to employment after a break from their careers.

Duke University and US Government relations firm DC Legislative and Regulatory Services co-sponsored a Vector Expedited Review Voucher (VERV) stakeholder event in Washington DC on 28^th February, 2024.  The purpose of the meeting was to explain and discuss the December 2023 Pesticide Registration (PR) notice published by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding the VERV program.

Held at the Duke University’s “Duke in DC” office on Pennsylvania Avenue, the event was attended by the EPA, the Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC), the agrochemical industry and other private and public sector organisations, including the American Mosquito Control Association (AMCA).  All are stakeholders in the development of innovative vector control tools to support malaria eradication.

Jeff Moe, adjunct professor at the Duke Global Health Institute, and a co-author of the 2017 Health Affairs article which proposed VERV, opened the event by reflecting on the successful introduction of the US Food and Drug Administration’s Priority Review Voucher (PRV) programme in 2007: “PRV had a positive impact on the development of treatments with limited profitability for neglected tropical diseases. The VERV programme can, like PRV, stimulate the development of innovative vector control solutions to help us better control, and hopefully eradicate, diseases such as malaria.”

Chris Larkin, Director of Operations and Communications at IVCC, who took part in a panel session, added: “Incentives like the VERV program are needed to ensure that innovative vector control tools are developed and made available with new modes of action to help address the threat of insecticide resistance which is critical for the fight against diseases such as malaria which still claim over 600,000 lives every year.”

Participants heard from EPA representatives including Susan Jennings (Senior Advisor for Public Health, Office of Pesticide Programs), Stephen Scheibel (Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) Coordinator,) and Billy Smith (Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs).  They described the operation of the VERV program including the eligibility criteria to receive a VERV award.  Jennings explained that to be eligible for a voucher, active ingredients must demonstrate efficacy against insecticide-resistant mosquitos (per efficacy guidelines), have a novel or unique mechanism different from other insecticides already registered by the agency for mosquito control, and target mosquitos which transmit disease.

Jennings added that, whilst active ingredients must not be contained in any EPA registered pesticide product, a registrant may petition the EPA to issue a voucher for a repurposed agricultural insecticide by demonstrating a significant public health benefit.

Jennings also highlighted that any novel mode of action will be assessed on case by basis by the Office of Pesticide Program (OPP) through the consideration of factors such as:

• The mechanism targets new or different receptors
• The pesticide is in a new or different chemical class classification by the Insecticide Resistance Action Committee
• The mechanism uses special approach such as interrupting behaviour, targeting different life stages, or prohibiting reproduction.

Full details of the EPA VERV program can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/mosquitocontrol/vector-expedited-review-voucher-verv-program

www.ivcc.com/vector-control/vector-expedited-review-voucher-verv/

www.vectorvoucher.info

IVCC is delighted to confirm that the Australian Government, has awarded IVCC a five-year, 17 million Australian dollar grant to advance the control of malaria in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and other Indo-Pacific countries.

Funded through the Australian Government’s Partnerships for a Healthy Region initiative, IVCC will continue the expansion of a vector control toolbox tailored to regional contexts which will better equip countries to prevent, control and work towards eliminating malaria and other vector-borne diseases.

The new grant which runs until January 2029, builds upon the programme of work IVCC initiated in 2018 under its first grant.  The workstreams developed under the new grant will support capacity-strengthening for the evaluation and adoption of new vector control tools in PNG and the further evaluation and uptake of spatial emanators in the Greater Mekong Subregion.  As a new area of focus, IVCC will also support improving the tools and approaches available for the control on Aedes-borne diseases in the region, including dengue and chikungunya.

Under its first grant, IVCC worked with its partners to demonstrate the efficacy of bite prevention tools deployed to forest-exposed populations in Cambodia at risk of malaria. In PNG, national capacity to evaluate and scale-up novel vector control tools was strengthened by developing new entomological facilities, a range of new product trials and establishing a national-led stakeholder network.

IVCC CEO, Justin McBeath said: “We are extremely grateful to the Australian Government for again entrusting IVCC to undertake this important vector control work across Papua New Guinea and the Indo-Pacific region.  In delivering our objectives, IVCC will work with local partners to support capacity development to ensure that local benefits are realised from the project and that the focus areas of the activities address the issues that are important to local communities and the region.”

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong said: “We cannot have the peaceful stable and prosperous region we want without improving the health and well-being of our region’s communities.  As close neighbours, friends and equals, Australia will continue to work with Papua New Guinea and Indo-Pacific partners to meet current and future health challenges.”

Image credit: Graham Small / IVCC

During British Science Week (8th to 17th March, 2024), IVCC proudly participated in a UK parliamentary reception, showcasing the groundbreaking New Nets Project (NNP).

Hosted by STOPAIDS, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on HIV & AIDS, the APPG for life sciences, and the Parliamentary & Scientific Committee, the event celebrated the crucial role of UK-based science and innovation in advancing progress towards health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

The evening spotlighted collaborative efforts between UK-led research and innovation institutions, and multilateral institutions, such as Unitaid, in accelerating global health responses through innovative new health products. Tenu Avafia, Deputy Director of Unitaid, spoke of the interconnected roles of Unitaid and The Global Fund in global health responses. The NNP, led by IVCC and funded by Unitaid and The Global Fund, piloted the use of new dual-insecticide nets in areas of moderate to high malaria transmission throughout sub-Saharan Africa. The project underscores the importance of product development and catalytic market-shaping interventions to deliver and scale up high-impact, cost-effective prevention tools that meet the needs of endemic countries.

While addressing the audience, Shadow Minister for Science, Research, and Innovation, Chi Onwurah, emphasized the pivotal role of partnerships in fostering innovation. The success and profound impact of the NNP are largely attributed to a geographically diverse consortium of partners. Their collaborative efforts encompassed trials, pilot studies, cost-effectiveness research, impact modelling, and implementation endeavours.

Chi also called for a commitment from governments to long-term stable funding, vital to deliver on global health goals.

Download the New Nets Project poster presented at the reception here.

L to R: Tenu Avafia (Deputy Director of Unitaid), Laura Roberts (IVCC Communications Manager) and Justin McBeath (IVCC CEO). Image Credit: Martha Varney / Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases APPG.