Approximately one billion people worldwide are infected with influenza each year, with 3 to 5 million cases becoming severe and resulting in 290,000 to 650,000 deaths due to respiratory complications. This highlights the significant global health burden posed by the flu.
Current seasonal influenza vaccines help reduce transmission and mortality, but coverage remains low, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasizes that next-generation influenza vaccines could offer broader and more durable protection, potentially saving millions of lives and lessening the global impact of the flu, while proving more effective than current seasonal vaccines which are designed for a single season.
The WHO’s Full Value of Improved Influenza Vaccine Assessment (FVIVA) report and an article published in the Vaccine journal assessed the health, economic, and policy impacts of these recent vaccine generations. These studies will inform investment decisions, vaccine introduction strategies, and the strengthening of seasonal influenza programs.
Dr. Philipp Lambach, the technical lead for the WHO project, stressed the importance of scientific evidence in decision-making regarding new influenza vaccines. “This assessment provides guidance for all parties involved in future vaccine investment, policy development, and research priorities,” he said in a statement released on Sunday, February 22, 2026.
According to FVIVA, widespread availability and use of next-generation vaccines between 2025 and 2050 could prevent up to 18 billion cases of influenza and save as many as 6.2 million lives, especially among the elderly, children, and pregnant women. This finding underscores the potential for significant public health gains.
the use of these vaccines could reduce antibiotic use and decrease antimicrobial resistance. The new generation of vaccines is projected to prevent up to 1.3 billion daily defined doses of antibiotics, supporting global efforts to combat resistance.
Implementation of next-generation vaccines will depend on country-specific contexts, including disease burden, health system capacity, vaccine pricing, and program considerations. Factors such as vaccine safety, efficacy, duration of protection, temperature stability, and shelf life are also crucial, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.
FVIVA is designed to support evidence-based dialogue between governments, researchers, manufacturers, and international partners. The framework provides a comprehensive overview of the potential value of vaccines, along with relevant considerations for their development and use.
WHO also updated vaccine product characteristics in December 2025, emphasizing that new-generation vaccines should be safe, effective, durable, protective against severe disease, and producible in low- and middle-income countries.
The FVIVA study revealed challenges in low- and middle-income countries, where influenza vaccine coverage remains low. The study explored the priorities and preferences of decision-makers in 13 countries, including Albania, Armenia, Bhutan, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mongolia, Morocco, Paraguay, Peru, South Africa, Tunisia, Kenya, and Thailand. The study ensured diverse representation based on influenza epidemiology and existing vaccination programs.
In each country, 97 national stakeholders participated, including immunization experts, epidemiologists, influenza surveillance specialists, regulators, vaccine procurement officials, and policymakers. A multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) conducted in Kenya, Thailand, and the other 11 LMICs indicated key criteria for decision-making regarding inactivated influenza vaccines, such as vaccine efficacy, the incidence of serious adverse events, duration of protection, coverage, and temperature storage requirements.
As of February 2026, 46 next-generation influenza vaccines are in clinical development using a variety of technology platforms. This international collaboration demonstrates a global commitment to accelerating vaccine innovation, reducing disease burden, saving millions of lives, and strengthening pandemic preparedness for the future. (Z-2)
