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Geneva, 8 June 2015 – G7 leaders today backed Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance to reach 300 million additional children between 2016 and 2020, leading to 5 to 6 million premature deaths being averted.
In the leaders' communique, released today after the meeting in Elmau, Bavaria, the successful Gavi pledging conference, which was held in January in Berlin was highlighted as a major step towards tackling childhood deaths.
The statement reads:
“The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being. We are therefore strongly committed to continuing our engagement in this field with a specific focus on strengthening health systems through bilateral programmes and multilateral structures. We welcome the success of the replenishment conference in Berlin for Gavi, the Global Vaccine Alliance, which has mobilized more than USD 7.5 billion to vaccinate an additional 300 million children by 2020.”
The new pledges received by Gavi in Berlin will lead to economic benefits of between US$ 80 and US$ 100 billion for developing countries through productivity gains and savings in treatment and transportation costs and caretaker wages.
The Gavi Pledging Conference, hosted by German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel saw unprecedented engagement from donors, with many deciding to double or even triple their commitments to support Gavi in what will be its highest period of financial need.