The vaccine budgets policy sets out Gavi’s approach to allocating funding for the procurement of vaccines, devices and freight to eligible countries during a five-year strategic period. 

The policy does not apply to Gavi support for emergencies, outbreaks or diagnostics. 

This policy came into effect on 3 July 2026.

What are vaccine budgets?

Vaccine budgets are country-specific allocations that provide Gavi-eligible countries with funding for Gavi-supported vaccines, devices and freight over a five-year strategic period.

Vaccine budgets aim to provide countries with greater predictability over the resources available for vaccine procurement over a strategic period, while providing flexibility to make choices across eligible vaccine programmes according to their needs and priorities.

Each country’s Vaccine budget has two components:

• Guaranteed budget: funding available for a set of defined vaccine programmes, supporting continuity of existing programmes as well as planned new introductions.
• Discretionary budget: funding that countries can use more flexibly across a set of eligible vaccine programmes based on their needs and priorities.

What is the purpose of the vaccine budgets policy?

The Vaccine budgets policy sets out the rules for how funding for country-specific Vaccine budgets is allocated and managed.

The policy aims to maximise health impact and value for money, minimise the risk of outbreaks, promote equitable access to vaccines, improve financial and programmatic sustainability, and protect vaccine market health.

How are vaccine budgets allocated?

Vaccine budgets are allocated to countries at the beginning of each five-year strategic period. The two components are determined differently:

• Guaranteed budgets are based on Gavi’s forecast of the funding required to support eligible ongoing and planned vaccine programmes.
• Discretionary budgets are allocated using a formula that takes into account countries’ financial capacity, disease burden and population size. This directs a greater share of available funding to countries with larger birth cohorts, higher under-five mortality and lower income levels. Initial self-financing countries also receive a minimum level of discretionary funding to support continuity of existing programmes and eligible malaria vaccine introduction and scale-up.

Countries are expected to manage their vaccine programmes within their allocated vaccine budget. 

Allocations are intended to remain stable to support predictable planning but may be reviewed and updated during the strategic period in response to changes in vaccine funding needs or available Gavi resources.

Documents

• The vaccine budget policy
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