Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, is a public-private partnership that helps vaccinate half the world’s children against some of the world’s deadliest diseases. Gavi’s mission to increase equitable and sustainable use of life-saving vaccines plays a fundamental role in supporting countries, particularly low-income countries, as they adapt to the rising health impacts of climate change.

Gavi’s vaccine portfolio targets many climate-sensitive pathogens, including malaria, yellow fever, meningitis A, Japanese encephalitis, typhoid, and cholera. Gavi invests into vaccine stockpiles as an essential part of emergency response to prevent diseases from spreading, including for climate-sensitive diseases. Gavi also has a Fragility, Emergencies and Displaced Populations (FED) Policy that enables flexible and differentiated support to countries facing chronic fragility and acute emergencies, including those originated by climate change.

Gavi is investing in, and providing support, to reduce carbon footprint in immunisation programmes, including scaling-up the uptake of more efficient and sustainable cold chain technologies at affordable prices, and providing health facility solar electrification at the last mile. Gavi is also working closely with a number of private sector partners on reducing the environmental impact of vaccine delivery and uptake in Gavi implementing countries, and exploring tools and innovations in healthcare waste management.

Supporting the following commitments:

• Conduct climate change and health vulnerability and adaptation assessments (V&As) at population level and/or health care facility level.
• Develop a health national adaptation plan (HNAP) informed by the health V&A, which forms part of the National Adaptation Plan.
• Use the V&A and HNAP to facilitate access to climate change funding for health.
• Set a target date by which to achieve health systems net zero emissions (ideally by 2050).
• Deliver a baseline assessment of greenhouse gas emissions of the health system (including supply chains).
• Develop an action plan or roadmap by a set date to develop a sustainable low carbon health system (including supply chains).

Country experience:

Since 2000, Gavi has provided routine immunisation and health systems strengthening support, including those related to the COP26 Health Programme Commitments, across 73 lower-income countries. For more information on Gavi-supported countries, please see Gavi's Annual Progress Reports: https://www.gavi.org/programmes-impact/our-impact/progress-reports

Links:

Site in English: https://www.gavi.org/

Site in French: https://www.gavi.org/fr