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Successful outcome of the “Saving children’s lives - the GAVI Alliance pledging conference for immunisation”, 13 June 2011 in London

View highlights from the pledging conference for immunisation on 13 June 2011. Source: GAVI.

GAVI Alliance donors make commitments to fund immunisation for more than a quarter of a billion children in developing countries


Download the Chair's summary and annexes from the conference (PDF 249KB)

Download the press release and tables showing a breakdown of donor pledges from the conference, and a composition of pledges for 2011-2015 (PDF - 192K)

The outcome of the pledging conference of GAVI Alliance donors, “Saving children’s lives”, on 13 June 2011 in London, ensures that the GAVI Alliance can immunise more than a quarter of a billion children in developing countries by 2015: donors have committed US$ 4.3 billion, exceeding an initial target of US$ 3.7 billion.

This major public and private donor engagement will allow GAVI to reach more children faster than planned and to accelerate the introduction of new vaccines. This increased support will allow GAVI to fully fund the record demand recently received from countries.

This success is the result of a broad and collective commitment to protecting children in developing countries from vaccine-preventable diseases. Civil society organisations have provided strong advocacy in encouraging donors to pledge. Donor support comes in addition to commitments from developing countries themselves to maintain or increase the co-financing of their vaccine programmes.

Pharmaceutical firms also announced they will contribute by offering lower prices on a range of life-saving vaccines supported by GAVI.

This momentum will build on GAVI's cost-effective success in preventing more than five million deaths in its first decade and seize upon the opportunity to save more than four million lives by 2015. Donor funding will enable the Alliance to support vaccines against pneumococcal disease, rotavirus, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), hepatitis B, and yellow fever, and ensure the complete roll-out of pentavalent vaccine in developing countries. GAVI will also now be able to introduce new vaccines against human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes cervical cancer in women, meningitis A, rubella, typhoid and Japanese encephalitis. In addition to its vaccine portfolio, GAVI provides support to country health systems to effectively deliver immunisation.

And still, every 20 seconds a child dies of a vaccine-preventable disease. Despite significant progress made in reducing childhood mortality, nearly two million children die each year from vaccine-preventable diseases. Pneumonia and diarrhoea are the two leading killers, causing nearly 40% of all childhood deaths. Most of these deaths occur in low-income countries, often among the hardest-to-reach children.

And so, there is more work to be done. We must do more to ensure that all children – no matter where they live – have equal access to life-saving vaccines. GAVI-eligible countries have expressed a strong interest in introducing new and underused vaccines. Recent applications for GAVI support have come from 50 developing countries – an unprecedented level of demand.

The momentum to reach more children with vaccines must be maintained by broadening the donor base. Vaccine firms should continue to deliver and expand on their promises to reduce vaccine prices and provide greater access. The developing countries should continue to meet their co-financing commitments. Other vaccines, like those against malaria, are currently under development, and will need to be evaluated for the pipeline as they come on-stream.

Responding to this demand for vaccines, the GAVI Alliance and its partners will work to fulfil the opportunity to save an additional four million children’s lives, making a significant contribution to Millennium Development Goal 4 to reduce under-five mortality, and to achieve the goals of the G8 leaders Muskoka Initiative to improve maternal, new born and child health.

Investments in immunisation are among the best value for money in global health. Immunisation is a highly-cost-effective foundation for strong communities and economies. For every premature death averted as a result of childhood immunisation, millions more are protected from common but preventable diseases enabling them to lead healthy and productive lives.

GAVI’s Resource Mobilisation Process
The June 2011 pledging conference followed two meetings in 2010 of GAVI Alliance donors and stakeholders. The GAVI resource mobilisation process 2010-2015 was designed at the High-Level Meeting on Financing Country Demand in The Hague in March 2010, where donors discussed and endorsed the compelling evidence of the cost-effectiveness of immunisation as a means to improve health and achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

The process was formally launched in October 2010 at the GAVI Call for Action and Resources meeting, where some early pledges were made. The resource mobilisation efforts culminated in London at the “Saving children’s lives - the GAVI Alliance pledging conference for immunisation” on 13 June 2011.