Gavi Launches Preventive Vaccine Program for Ebola and Other Diseases

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance today announced that certain countries it supports can now apply to introduce four additional vaccines: preventive Ebola, human rabies vaccine for post-exposure prophylaxis, multivalent meningococcal conjugate, and hepatitis B birth dose.

These four vaccine programs were previously approved by the Gavi Board but were put on hold due to the recent pandemic.

The latest expansion of Gavi's vaccine portfolio aligns with its commitment to ensuring that lower-income countries access impactful vaccines as soon as possible.

Gavi will begin funding preventive vaccination against Ebola in countries most at risk of outbreaks of the deadly viral disease. Gavi first committed to supporting Ebola vaccination in 2014, during the deadly 2014–2016 West Africa outbreak.

In 2016, Gavi signed an Advance Purchase Commitment with Merck that enabled the deployment of 300,000 ERVEBO® investigational doses in Ebola outbreaks.

More than 130,000 doses of ERVEBO vaccines have been shipped for preventive vaccination campaigns in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea-Bissau, and Uganda.

In addition about 7,000 vaccines were shipped for outbreak response vaccination. 

Dr Sania Nishtar, CEO of Gavi, commented in a press release on June 13, 2024, "....Ebola is a terrible disease that can lay waste to whole communities."

"In one decade, we have been able to progress from having no approved vaccines during a deadly outbreak to having a global stockpile that has helped cut down cases and deaths – and now vaccines are even used preventively to protect those at highest risk."

The portfolio will be further expanded in Gavi's next strategic period, from 2026 to 2030, seeking to protect more people against diseases faster than ever before. Continuing all Gavi-supported programs after 2025 is contingent upon successful fundraising for the Alliance's next strategic period.