Partners RESULTS International, The ONE Campaign and Global Poverty Project call for vaccines support

Photo: Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance

WHAT'S THE ISSUE?

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is working to children's lives and protecting people's health by increasing access to immunisation in poor countries. Only 5 per cent of the world's children are routinely accessing all 11 basic vaccines recommended by WHO. This means that 22.6 million children around the world still don’t have access to the most basic vaccines. One in five of all children who die before the age of five lose their lives to vaccine-preventable diseases. The overwhelming majority of these deaths occur in developing countries.

Every child, no matter where he or she is born, has the right to the opportunity of a healthy life and vaccines are one of the best ways to assure it. Routine vaccines and immunizations are the cheapest, most effective way to ensure that kids have a future beyond the age of five, enabling them to grow up to live happy, healthy lives. Losing less days in school sickness, vaccines also helps sustain and develop poorer economies by allowing children to fulfil their potential as children and into their adult lives. To continue its proven and incredibly important work for the world's children, Gavi needs to raise billions of dollars at its forthcoming replenishment meetings as a foundation for its work for the period 2016-2020. At these meetings, Gavi will make its case for support to world leaders.

HOW DID GLOBAL CITIZENS RESPOND?

In 2013, global citizens took more than 55,000 actions in support of efforts to secure greater access to vaccines for children everywhere.

At the 2013 Global Citizen Festival, Seth Berkeley, the CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, called for momentum and funding to extend access to vaccines and immunizations to children and adults regardless of their place of birth.

Following the 2013 Global Citizen Festival, Global Poverty Project staff have been working closely with Gavi to ensure that Gavi’s replenishment needs are addressed. We’ve had over forty meetings with our advocacy contacts so far this year, and we’re also in conversations with a number of NGOs to see how we can partner on our campaigning to ensure that Gavi is fully funded.

WHAT'S THE IMPACT?

Even though our campaigning will build up over the spring – we’ve got some exciting plans afoot that global citizens will be able to take part in – we’ve had a strong start! In Canada, the Government has ring-fenced it’s Official Development Assistance spending with a special emphasis on global health, with no cuts in funding.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Gavi is currently developing a new strategy for 2016-2020 that could save an additional 6 million children’s lives if fully funded. Global citizens will be campaigning extensively with other partners to ensure that Gavi receives this life-saving funding through their replenishment campaign through 2014, campaigning not just in the USA, but also in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

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