The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has announced a commitment of up to $125 million to help end the acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and prepare for future pandemics.

In remarks made remotely at the Global COVID-19 Summit, foundation co-chair Bill Gates said the latest funding will support initiatives to strengthen health systems in low-income countries, enhance integrated disease monitoring, expand access to pandemic tools, and help countries manage COVID-19 as well as other pressing health needs. Since the start of the pandemic, the foundation has committed more than $2 billion to global COVID-19 response efforts and efforts to advance health equity. To date, those funds have gone toward increasing access to COVID-19 vaccines in low- and middle-income countries, accelerating research to develop treatments and tests, helping improve regulatory systems, supporting manufacturing, and prioritizing equitable product delivery.

According to the foundation, strong disease surveillance systems are critical to effectively identifying and monitoring the spread of emerging infectious diseases. As part of the new commitment, the foundation will fund the advancement of global, regional, and country-level integrated disease surveillance to ensure that all countries—particularly low- and middle-income countries—have the core capabilities to respond more quickly and effectively to the next pandemic threat. In addition, the funding will help build the capacity of vaccine manufacturers in low- and middle-income countries to accelerate the development and equitable delivery of safe and effective vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics in the event of a future pandemic. This will, in turn, help countries improve their capacity to address endemic infectious diseases and respond to emerging pathogens.

“Our ability to avoid pandemics years down the road depends on the actions we take now,” said Gates. “The world can’t wait until a new virus emerges. We need to start preparing immediately. And we need to do so with a focus on the people most at risk and the countries most often left behind.”

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