By Folasade Akpan
Ethiopia, Norway and the United Kingdom (UK) have pledged 240 million dollars to support the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations’ (CEPI) five-year plan to strengthen global preparedness against epidemic and pandemic threats.
CEPI said in a statement on Monday that Ethiopia had committed to continuing its financial support, while Norway pledged 106 million dollars and the UK up to 134 million dollars.
The pledges were announced at its side event during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81) in support of CEPI 3.0, its 2027–2031 strategy.
The statement also said that CEPI was seeking additional investment of 2.5 billion dollars to unlock its plan to protect the world against epidemic and pandemic threats.
According to CEPI, the significant investment comes before world leaders convene at the UN High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response on Friday.
It also said that the high-level meeting would discuss a concise and action-oriented political declaration to better protect the world from future health emergencies.
The organisation said the planned strategy aimed to systematically reduce the likelihood, impact and cost of epidemics and pandemics.
CEPI Chief Executive Officer, Dr Richard Hatchett, said the investments would strengthen global disease defences and support rapid and equitable responses to emerging viral threats.
“We now have the science to develop a vaccine against a new viral threat in a fraction of the time it once took, but being able to do so requires steady investment and shared responsibility to keep that capability ready and waiting,” he said.
Hatchett said the pledges demonstrated the foresight and leadership required to strengthen global health security.
Ethiopia’s Minister of Health, Dr Mekdes Daba, said health security was a shared responsibility, particularly for Africa.
Daba said Ethiopia’s support for CEPI 3.0 would help accelerate vaccine development against known and emerging threats while strengthening Africa’s research, manufacturing and regulatory capacity.
Norway’s Minister of International Development, Åsmund Aukrust, said his country’s support for CEPI extended beyond vaccines to stronger preparedness, scientific collaboration and equitable access to life-saving health technologies.
He said the COVID-19 pandemic had demonstrated the importance of international cooperation, research and innovation in responding to emerging health crises.
The UK Health and Social Care Minister, Baroness Merron, said investment in vaccine research would help protect the public against future health threats.
“By providing up to 100 million pounds in backing for CEPI, we will help develop the next generation of vaccines against some of the world’s most dangerous infectious diseases and ensure the UK is better prepared to respond rapidly when new health threats emerge,” she said.
Chris Elmore, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Minister, said disease threats do not respect borders, describing prevention, preparedness and response as both a global responsibility and a UK national interest.
Elmore said the UK funding would support the development and equitable access to vaccines against epidemic and pandemic threats, including Ebola.
He said it would also support the 100 Days Mission, which seeks to make safe, affordable and effective diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines ready for approval within 100 days of identifying a new epidemic or pandemic threat.
CEPI said its 3.0 strategy was focused on developing vaccines against dangerous pathogens and viral families, advancing rapid-response vaccine platforms and strengthening global research, manufacturing and regulatory networks.
The organisation said the current Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo had underscored the importance of sustained investment in preparedness.
It said it had mobilised human, technical and financial resources within days of the outbreak being declared an international emergency and was supporting the nationally led research response alongside the World Health Organization, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies.
CEPI said it was supporting the urgent development of five Bundibugyo virus vaccine candidates, with the goal of advancing safe and effective vaccines for use during the outbreak and strengthening preparedness for future outbreaks.
It said its prior investments in rapid-response vaccine platforms, research and development networks and partnerships with researchers had made the accelerated response possible.(NAN)
Edited by Abiemwense Moru