Guinea-Bissau, one of the world's poorest nations, has halted a US-funded hepatitis B vaccine trial due to ethical concerns. The country’s health minister, Quinhin Nantote, said the trial was “cancelled or suspended” because the science was not well-reviewed. The vaccine study planned by Danish researchers involved vaccinating 7,000 newborns immediately and delaying vaccination for another 7,000 until six weeks old to study health effects. This design raised alarms because the World Health Organization recommends giving the hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth. Nearly 20% of adults and 11% of children in Guinea-Bissau have hepatitis B, risking severe illness. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) will help review the study alongside officials from Denmark and the US. Africa CDC director Jean Kaseya emphasized the decision belongs to Guinea-Bissau’s sovereignty. However, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) disputed the suspension, calling Africa CDC "a powerless, fake organization." HHS stated the trial would proceed as planned without providing proof against the cancellation claim. Medical experts criticized the study’s design, saying all children should receive the standard vaccine care, not be used as test subjects in a trial withholding timely vaccination. Abdulhammad Babatunde, a Nigerian health researcher, said, “Africans want to solve Africa’s problems, not satisfy the curiosity of the funders.” The confusion also stems from changes made to the study after initial approval by Guinea-Bissau’s ethics committee, which has not approved recent updates. The Danish researchers apparently did not seek ethics approval from Denmark or US boards either, raising further concerns. Guinea-Bissau faces many health challenges, including limited access to water, poor healthcare, and high maternal mortality. Both Nantote and Kaseya highlighted these issues while stressing the importance of protecting children and respecting the country’s decisions on the trial.