Co-financing means that countries share the cost of GAVI-supported vaccines by procuring some of the required vaccine doses with non-GAVI funds. From 2008, all countries will progressively co-finance GAVI support.
Co-financing is intended to gradually increase countries’ share of the cost of vaccines, thus facilitating the sustainability of country immunisation programmes and enhancing a country's evidence-based decision making.
All countries will eventually co-finance GAVI-supported vaccines, but only some countries are required to co-finance from 2008. The co-financing policy requires countries to start co-financing when they introduce new, GAVI-supported vaccines, and to co-finance existing vaccines beyond the first five years (or equivalent) of GAVI support.
A country‘s co-financing requirement is communicated in individual "decision letters" from the GAVI Secretariat to each country.
To co-finance, countries do NOT send money to GAVI, but procure a proportion of their required vaccines independently and with non-GAVI funds. Partners such as UNICEF, the World Bank, and the World Health Organization are supporting countries in drawing up plans and proposals and in fulfilling co-financing requirements.
The GAVI Alliance partners monitor countries’ fulfillment of their co-financing requirements.
For countries that procure outside of these mechanisms, proof that the co-financing requirement has been met must be submitted to GAVI in the country’s Annual Progress Report to GAVI.
If a country has not procured the stipulated quantity of vaccine by the end of the calendar year, the country is considered to be in arrears with GAVI, triggering support from WHO, UNICEF, the World Bank, and others, as well as the GAVI Secretariat to help the country fulfill its commitments. However, being in arrears may result in the withholding of GAVI support until the situation is rectified.
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