The world’s first routine vaccine program for malaria will launch in Cameroon on Monday, marking a game-changing moment in a public health battle against the mosquito-borne disease that kills almost half a million children under the age of 5 in Africa every year. The RTS,S vaccine, which was approved by the World Health Organization after successful trials, will eventually be administered to about 6.6 million children in 2024 and 2025 across 20 countries on the continent. “Today marks a historic milestone in our enduring fight against malaria, a disease that has long plagued Africa with severe health and economic consequences,” Dr. Abdulaziz Mohammed of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Ethiopia told The Times.