John AdoyiThe Chief Executive Officer of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, has warned that the United States’ planned funding termination for the alliance could have catastrophic consequences for global health, potentially leading to over a million preventable deaths.
Speaking with Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Thursday, Gavi CEO Sania Nishtar described the move as a major threat to global health security. “A cut in Gavi’s funding from the US would have a disastrous impact on global health security, potentially resulting in over a million deaths from preventable diseases and endangering lives everywhere from dangerous disease outbreaks,” she said.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe funding cut is part of a broader plan by the US government to terminate support for thousands of groups previously backed under the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
A leaked 281-page document sent to the US Congress on Monday revealed that US government intends to halt 5,341 funding initiatives, including its contributions to Gavi.
The United States has been a key donor to the Vaccine Alliance, which has helped prevent over 18 million deaths worldwide. Gavi has not yet received an official termination notice from the US government, Nishta said, but she confirmed that the alliance is actively engaging with the White House and Congress.
“We are working to secure the $300 million approved by Congress for our 2025 activities, as well as long-term funding,” she said.
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Since its inception in 2000, Gavi has supported the immunization of over 1.1 billion children across the world, averting more than 18.8 million future deaths. In 2023 alone, Gavi-backed vaccination programmes immunized 69 million children—the second-highest annual number in its history—helping to prevent 1.3 million deaths. Notably, over 14 million girls received the HPV vaccine in 2023, surpassing the total number vaccinated in the previous decade and significantly reducing the risk of cervical cancer, according to ETHealthworld.com.
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Beyond health benefits, Gavi’s immunization programs have also delivered substantial economic gains. Since 2000, the alliance’s efforts have generated over $250 billion in economic benefits worldwide. If US funding is withdrawn, it could slash nearly $1 billion that was pledged to support Gavi’s initiatives through 2030. The United States currently provides approximately one-quarter of Gavi’s total budget.
With the looming funding cut, Gavi and global health advocates fear that millions of lives could be at risk, underscoring the urgent need for continued financial support to sustain vaccination programmes in low-income countries.
