BNET: GAVI’s Impact on Vaccine Market is Bringing Down Prices
Four million deaths averted through boost for immunisation over last 10 years
HANOI, Vietnam—Following the increasing impact of the GAVI Alliance on the vaccine market, the price of one of the major combination vaccines, the pentavalent, is falling considerably, enabling GAVI’s partners to vaccinate millions of more children in the developing world.
News of the unprecedented progress was announced in Hanoi, Vietnam just before the GAVI Partners’ Forum, which unites some 400 participants from all over the world including ministers of health, donors, civil society and industry representatives, researchers and development experts.
"This is the GAVI effect at work: encouraging and pooling growing demand from countries, attracting new manufacturers and increasing competition to drive down prices," said GAVI CEO Julian Lob-Levyt. "The price drop has come later than we had hoped and it needs to fall further. But this is a clear indication that our market-shaping efforts work."
Dr Lob-Levyt stated that pentavalent is projected to be GAVI’s single biggest expenditure through to 2015, accounting for some 40% of vaccine spending. "Its price, and those of other GAVI vaccines, is the major determinant of the future support that the GAVI Alliance will be able to provide to countries."
The majority of vaccines financed through GAVI is purchased by Alliance member UNICEF. A recent tender for pentavalent vaccine has shown a significant price drop with the weighted average price for 2010 falling below US$ 3, a decrease of almost 50 cents per dose on the 2009 price. This will create approximately US$ 55 million in savings in 2010 and enable GAVI to finance the immunisation of 6.3 million more children.
