President John Mahama has engaged with international health leaders in Brussels to reinforce Ghana’s commitment to global immunisation efforts.
The meetings were a prelude to the GAVI Vaccine Alliance pledging conference held in Brussels yesterday.
The President held discussions with the Chair of the GAVI Board, José Manuel Barroso, who expressed appreciation to President Mahama for his consistent advocacy for vaccine equity.
He highlighted the significance of President Mahama’s participation in the pledging session, and said that the Presidents’s influential voice would be instrumental in mobilising donor support for GAVI’s life-saving initiatives.
In a separate meeting with the European Council President and philanthropist, Bill Gates, President Mahama said Ghana had made some advancement in the health sector, particularly in primary healthcare.
He said the government had also uncapped the National Health Insurance Fund and established a National Vaccine Institute.
The President acknowledged the Gates Foundation’s substantial contributions to Ghana’s health sector, and the pivotal role it played in GAVI’s global immunisation campaigns.
Pledging session
The high-level pledging session yesterday marked a critical moment of GAVI’s 2026-2030 strategy, which aims to vaccinate an additional 500 million children worldwide while preventing an estimated eight million deaths.
As a respected advocate for global health equity, President Mahama called for increased investment in immunisation programmes, particularly for developing nations.
Ghana’s partnership with GAVI has yielded significant public health benefits over the years, including remarkable reductions in child mortality and enhanced capacity for disease outbreak response.
President Mahama’s engagements in Brussels, therefore, underscores the country’s continued leadership in promoting accessible healthcare solutions across Africa and beyond.
Being a longtime champion of immunisation, the President further emphasised the importance of global solidarity in ensuring equitable vaccine access, particularly for lower-income nations.
“A fully funded GAVI will save lives, boost economies and fortify global health security,” he said.
This is not his first advocacy for the cause. In 2013, the President played a pivotal role in rallying support for GAVI’s life-saving initiatives.
Background
The Global Summit on Health and Prosperity through Immunisation event is being co-hosted by the European Union, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and GAVI.
The summit seeks to mobilise support for GAVI’s 2026-2030 strategy, which targets vaccinating 500 million more children, preventing eight million deaths and mitigating 150 disease outbreaks, yielding over $100 billion in economic benefits.
Since its inception in 2000, GAVI has immunised over a billion children, averted 18.8 million deaths, and contributed $250 billion in economic gains to vulnerable nations.
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