South Africa is set to unveil a new pandemic fund for low- and middle-income countries on Thursday, marking a major step in global efforts to bolster health security and pandemic preparedness.
The initiative, led by South Africa’s Department of Health in partnership with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and UNICEF, is a global financing mechanism that provides catalytic funding to support pandemic preparedness and response in low- and middle-income countries.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, the Department of Health and its partners said the fund will be hosted by the World Bank and will provide catalytic financing to support pandemic readiness across vulnerable regions.
“South Africa’s engagement through this project reinforces its leadership and commitment to advancing health system resilience,” the statement read.
The launch event in Pretoria will feature keynote addresses from national and international leaders, the presentation of South Africa’s implementation strategy and a panel discussion on pandemic preparedness.
Senior officials from multiple government departments – including Health, Agriculture and Environment – will join representatives from global health agencies and civil society for the launch.
South Africa’s leadership in this initiative builds on hard-earned lessons from recent health crises.
The country recorded its first COVID-19 case in March 2020 and quickly became the epicentre of the pandemic on the African continent.
It faced multiple waves of infection, including outbreaks driven by the Beta and Omicron variants, and implemented one of the strictest lockdowns in the region.
Despite challenges such as overwhelmed hospitals and economic strain, South Africa developed robust incident management systems and contributed to global research efforts, including genomic surveillance and vaccine development.
JN/APA