World leaders pledge $4.8 billion in 2022 Break COVID Now Summit

World leaders in Germany, Ghana, Indonesia, and Senegal came together in the 2022 Break COVID Now Summit, co-hosted by vaccine alliance Gavi, to ensure support for equitable access to vaccines.

The Summit represented an affirmation of the international community’s support for COVAX’s multilateral approach to vaccine equity, as Germany, Indonesia, and Senegal hold presidencies in the G7, G20, and AU respectively. The event successfully secured commitments valued at $4.8 billion for the Gavi COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), the mechanism which supports equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines for lower-income countries.

A total of $1.7 billion has been committed in new sovereign donor pledges towards the 2022 AMC fundraising ask, as well $2.1 billion worth of commitments via new innovative financial mechanisms provided by the EIB and the US Development Finance Corporation (DFC). At least $1 billion has been made available by three multilateral development banks (MDBs) – World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and European Investment Bank (EIB).

These commitments will enable COVAX to provide urgent delivery support for lower-income countries, and ensure dose donations can be shipped and administered.

“We welcome this incredible show of global solidarity from so many stakeholders at a time when the world faces multiple challenges and extend thanks to all those who participated – particularly our co-hosts for helping galvanize international support,” said Professor José Manuel Barroso, Gavi Board Chair. “This pandemic is not over: while gaps in coverage remain, it will continue to wreak havoc on individuals, communities, and economies. Achieving equity is the key to breaking COVID-19 now. We cannot afford to wait and risk the virus undoing all the progress that has been made.”

Lina Adams