WHO released the priorities for vaccine evaluations for prequalification for 2011-2012. The prioritization list below “is a tool published every two years by the WHO by the prequalification programme to guide decisions as to the vaccines on which to focus resources.” Vaccines are categorized in four groups: high, medium, low and no priority. The priority list was developed by consultation between WHO and the two United Nations purchasing agencies (UNICEF and the Pan American Health Organization Revolving Fund) which use the prequalification service for vaccines. The prioritization exercise takes into account needs from WHO programmes (e.g. polio, measles, rabies) and the International Health Regulations, as well as vaccines defined globally as priority for accelerated introduction.

WHO said that in the consultation process for the current list, vaccines were considered if, based on information available to the UN purchasing agencies and WHO, they were already available in the market or were expected to become available during the biennium 2011-2012. The criteria used to assign priorities include:

a) Demand in the respective UN-supplied markets, with consideration given to plans for introduction;
b) WHO programmatic needs;
c) recommendations of WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on immunization ; and
d) security of supplies: number, diversity, and production capacity of suppliers in the market.

Vaccines prequalification priority list 2011-12

– High priority vaccines

– Bivalent oral polio (bOPV1+3)

– DTwP based pentavalent combination (fully liquid DTwP-Hep B-Hib)

– Inactivated polio (IPV)

– Meningococcal A-containing conjugate

– Meningoccocal AC-containing polysaccharide

– Meningococcal W-containing polysaccharide

– Meningococcal W-containing conjugate

– Pneumococcal conjugate

– Rotavirus

– Trivalent oral polio (tOPV)

– Yellow fever

Vaccines of high programmatic interest but not available for supply in January 2011 (e.g. dengue; malaria; and new formulations of current vaccine types with enhanced stability outside of the currently accepted storage conditions) may be considered as high priority if they become available before the end of the period for which the list is in force.

http://www.who.int/immunization_standards/vaccine_quality/pq_priorities/en/index.html