Why Has The Yellow Fever Vaccine Run Out?

Yellow fever vaccine complicated to make and distribute

More than 200 people have been killed in the current yellow fever outbreak in Angola which the World Health Organization (WHO) says is the worst to hit the oil-rich country in 30 years.

BBC Africa Live report continues:

WHO said on 24 March that it has sent its entire stockpile of 5.7 million doses of yellow fever vaccine to Angola to deal with the outbreak in the country.    

The WHO say an additional 1.5 million doses are needed to vaccinate the population at risk in Luanda province alone.  

It doesn't seem like replacements will be produced quickly.

Professor Lawrence Madoff from the International Society for Infectious Diseases told BBC Newsday that they need to produce more but it is a complicated vaccine to make and distribute.

He estimates an increase of production will take at least a month. 

Prof Madoff is concerned that the outbreak will spread beyond Angola to Asia.