Bern, Press releases, 23.06.2009

On 23 June 2009, Ambassador Paul Seger, Director of the Directorate of Public International Law, signed on behalf of the Federal Council, a Host country Agreement with the GAVI Alliance (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization). On the part of the GAVI Alliance, the Agreement was signed by Mr. Julian Lob-Levyt, the GAVI Alliance’s Executive Secretary.

Established in Geneva, the GAVI Alliance is a forefront actor in the domain of international public health. It pursues the objective of providing vaccines and the means required to administer them to the most disadvantaged populations throughout the world, while contributing to the research and development of the most essential vaccines. Operating on the basis of public-private partnerships, it has already enabled more than 3.4 million lives to be saved.  

In late 2008, the GAVI Alliance underwent a radical organizational transformation necessitated by its success and the evolution of its activities. It detached itself from UNICEF, which had been hosting its Secretariat, and became an independent entity so as to be better able to confront the new challenges emerging on the horizon. Having taken into account that the tasks of the GAVI Alliance are essentially of a “State” nature, together with the pre-eminence of the public sector in its representation and financing, The Federal Council, invoking the Host State Act, decided to conclude a Host Country Agreement with the GAVI Alliance, thereby conferring on it the same privileges and immunities as those normally granted to a inter-governmental organization.  

Beyond its institutional partners hailing from the domain of public health, e.g., UNICEF and the WHO, the GAVI Alliance works closely with developing countries, rallying them to take action in the conduct of vaccination programmes. The public health tasks entrusted to the GAVI Alliance are a priority in today’s world and directly impact on the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), in particular the goal of reducing child mortality.


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