Advancing heat-stable vaccines: Vaccine Innovation Prioritisation Strategy (VIPS) consultation on programmatic needs and strategic opportunities in low- and middle-income settings

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance

The Vaccine Innovation Prioritisation Strategy (VIPS) identified heat stability and controlled temperature chain in 2020 as a priority innovation for partner support. This report sets out what countries themselves want from it. Drawing on interviews and an online survey across 33 countries, it documents the cold chain challenges immunisation programmes face, the storage and shelf life attributes they would prefer, and the trade-offs they are and are not willing to accept. Countries favoured storage at 2–8°C with a VVM30 and at least 12 months' shelf life remaining on delivery, and would accept trade-offs only where the programmatic gain was clear. It closes with recommended actions for manufacturers, funders, policymakers and implementers.