Press Releases

1. On Friday, May 20, the Government of Japan decided to commit 76 million US dollars by the end of 2020 to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi). The total contribution for the 2016-2020 period will amount to 95 million US dollars including the 19 million US dollars already disbursed in 2016.

2. Gavi was established in 2000 for the goal of improving access to vaccines in developing countries. Since then, approximately 500 million children have been immunized with Gavi-supported vaccines and 7 million deaths have been averted. Most of the child deaths in developing countries are due to preventable diseases, and further efforts to reduce child mortality are required under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Japan’s contribution will accelerate Gavi’s plan to immunize 300 million additional children and save at least 5 million lives by 2020.

3. This year, Ise-Shima Summit, as the first G7 Summit after the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, will take up health as that is an important element of SDGs, and shed light on infectious disease control and health system strengthening towards promoting Universal Health Coverage. As the G7 chair, Japan intends to continue to contribute to infectious diseases control and health system strengthening through its support to Gavi.