GAVI
Vaccine Alliance; funds vaccine procurement for lower-income countries; partner in H5N1 pandemic preparedness.
Last refreshed: 7 May 2026
Will GAVI secure equitable H5N1 vaccine access before the next pandemic strain emerges?
Timeline for GAVI
Mentioned in: WHO publishes three Q1 pathogen-family roadmaps
Pandemics and Biosecurity- What does GAVI do in a pandemic?
- GAVI co-manages advance purchase agreements and cold-chain logistics for lower-income countries, ensuring they can access vaccines at price points and on timelines comparable to high-income nations. It co-ran the COVAX facility during COVID-19.Source: GAVI
- How is GAVI involved in the H5N1 vaccine trial?
- GAVI is the institution expected to negotiate advance purchase commitments for lower-income countries once the Moderna mRNA H5N1 Phase 3 trial produces data, to avoid repeating the COVID-19 access inequality where LMIC countries received vaccines 12-18 months after high-income markets.Source: CEPI
- Is GAVI funded by the US government?
- Yes. The US is a significant GAVI donor, alongside the UK, EU member states, and the Gates Foundation. Donor contributions are pledged in multi-year replenishment cycles; GAVI's current capitalisation runs to several billion dollars per replenishment round.Source: GAVI
Background
GAVI (the Vaccine Alliance) is an international public-private partnership founded in 2000, headquartered in Geneva, that funds vaccine procurement and delivery infrastructure for lower-income countries. It draws on contributions from donor governments, including the UK, US, and EU member states, as well as the Gates Foundation and the pharmaceutical industry. GAVI co-manages the COVAX facility and works alongside CEPI and WHO to coordinate pre-purchase agreements, cold-chain logistics, and regulatory harmonisation in countries that cannot negotiate directly with vaccine manufacturers. It has immunised more than one billion children since its founding and is the primary financing mechanism for introducing new vaccines in the world's 57 lowest-income countries.
GAVI is central to the equity dimension of the 100 Days Mission and the Moderna H5N1 Phase 3 trial. If the Phase 3 trial produces emergency-use authorisation data, GAVI is the institution responsible for ensuring low- and middle-income countries receive the resulting vaccine on a timeline comparable to high-income purchasers, a commitment the COVID-19 experience tested severely. GAVI also participates in the WHO R&D Blueprint consultations, contributing a procurement and delivery perspective to pathogen-family roadmaps. Without GAVI's advance purchase structures, a successful mRNA H5N1 candidate risks the same 12-to-18-month LMIC access lag that characterised the COVID-19 vaccine rollout.
