The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) “movement” was officially launched January 31, 2000 at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. GAVI headquarters are based in Geneva, Switzerland. The board of GAVI held their first meeting held on October 28, 1999 in New York. The World Health Organization is a founding partner of GAVI with its Director-General, Dr Brundtland chairing the GAVI Board for the first two years. [1, 5]
“Nearly three million children worldwide still die needlessly each year of vaccine-preventable illnesses,” … “For only US $17 per child, we can provide lifetime protection against the six historical scourges – polio, diphtheria, tuberculosis, pertussis, measles and tetanus. And for not much more, we can extend the protection to include hepatitis B, yellow fever and Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), the leading cause of pneumonia and meningitis.”
said Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland , Director-General of the WHO and the chair of GAVI, and author of “Sustainable Development”
“The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization is a partnership dedicated to ensuring that all children, however poor, have equal access to these vaccines. The Alliance also works to spur the development of new vaccines against major killers that primarily affect the world’s poorest people [Start with poor, as always]. It is founded on the principle[belief] that immunization is a human right and a key step towards overcoming poverty [heart strings]. ” [vaccinealliance.org]
GAVI believed vaccines and immunization play a “crucial role… in world health and economic development”, with the objective of “working with government officials to make universal immunization an important national priority.” The actively asked for contribution$ to the Global Fund for Children’s Vaccines, and advocated for school curricula to include immunization education. Currently “the key barriers to universal childhood immunization are insufficient financing and inadequate vaccination infrastructure,” and awareness of the “value and cost-effectiveness of immunization with both new and old vaccines…” This way “under-used vaccines” [and all the new ones to come] will have a market! [Launch brochure 4]
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation‘s initial five-year pledge of US$753 million in 1999 provided the seed money to launch (GAVI), now referred to as Gavi The Vaccine Alliance. It is a partnership with the global vaccine makers, Rockefeller Foundation, United Nations bodies all to help save lives through vaccination in the world’s poorest countries. [2, 3]
Gavi “not only pays for the vaccines, but also spurs their development and expanded production…the Vaccine Alliance’s business model influences the market for vaccines.”
Gavi is a public-private partnership with the Gates Foundation, WHO, UNICEF and the World Bank and others. Gavi is funded through an assortment of government pledges, the Gates Foundation and private sector donors. Their funding model draws heavily on the private sector, especially vaccine manufactures. Gavi is ran by a board of representatives.
Australia pledges yearly contributions to Gavi, in 2013 representing 2.3% of funds.
Gavi has changed it’s legal name and structure as it has evolved:
- 2000 > The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations
- 2006 > The GAVI Alliance
- 2014 > GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance
Since 23 June 2009, when Gavi restructured it’s focus and separated from UNICEF, it has had total immunity from investigation or audit, meaning it is not accountable for it’s global influence, actions and decisions. Also Gavi does not pay taxes. [@57min]