Catharina Boehme: The innovative financing scheme announced today in Brussels is a major step for global health

Catharina Boehme, Assistant Director-General of External Relations at WHO, on LinkedIn:

“The innovative financing scheme announced today in Brussels is a major step for global health. It took three years in the making. But now, we will be able to make meaningful progress to ensure hundreds of millions of children receive polio vaccinations and boost health innovation in low-income countries.

This is great news not only for the polio eradication efforts. This innovative scheme will help finance and strengthen health systems, so they are more resilient and can help protect people from other diseases. We hope this model can serve as the basis for similar deals in global health.

A 1.1 billion euros financing package is only possible by working with extraordinary partners from the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the European Commission, UNICEF and the World Health Organization.

I’m happy to be part of this signing ceremony. Meaningful progress for health takes time. I join Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in thanking all partners, and keep going for the last push to stamp polio out.”

Source: Catharina Boehme/LinkedIn