Statements

The GAVI Alliance welcomes the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) report and is now working with the independent GAVI data task team, established earlier this year, to take forward and unravel its implications. The head of IHME, Dr. Chris Murray, has been invited to join the task team.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon praised the work of the GAVI Alliance and International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm) for delivering on a promise to provide reliable financing for children’s vaccination.

Speaking at the opening plenary of the Third High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Accra, Ghana, GAVI Alliance Executive Secretary Julian Lob-Levyt highlighted the experience of GAVI and other global partnerships, saying that the strong focus on country ownership to achieve results had proved effective.

The GAVI Alliance welcomes a new report launched yesterday in the United Kingdom by the All Party Group on Pneumococcal Disease Prevention (APPG), which highlights the devastating global health burden caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae , a group of bacteria that

The Ethiopian International Health Partnership Plus Compact was signed in Addis Ababa today. Julian Lob-Levyt, Executive Secretary of the GAVI Alliance congratulated the Ethiopian Health Minster Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus saying: "We look forward to working with the Ethiopian Government, the development partners and national stakeholders to advance the International Health Partnership principles in Ethiopia."

Burundi is one of the poorest countries in the world. But, in spite of years of civil unrest and poor infrastructure, its commitment to immunisation has been consistently high. Burundi’s DTP3 immunisation coverage increased from 54 per cent in 2001 to 93 per cent in 2006, according to World Health Organization (WHO) figures.

This acclaimed BBC series which airs “real stories of courage and determination from around the world” features two friends Zewde Getahun and Fantaye Yenehu, working in their community, providing 16 different kinds of health service. They are among Ethiopia’s 24,000 health extension workers, whose training is funded by GAVI’s health system strengthening support.

The 2008 report issued today in Cape Town provides a significant assessment of the progress in maternal, newborn and child survival. I am pleased to see the report's particular focus on the pivotal role of immunisation in efforts to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), especially MDG 4, which aims at reducing by two thirds the mortality rate among children under five. Significant increases in immunisation rates serve as among the most promising trends for reducing childhood mortality and achieving MDG 4.

Speaking to a gathering of eminent international scientists, Dr Lob-Levyt describes the business model of the GAVI Alliance and its impact through partnership on shaping vaccine markets, stimulating new financial resources, raising immunisation coverage in the world’s poorest countries, and strengthening the capacity of health systems to sustain and build health gains.