HERA and CEPI facilitate Roundtable on vaccine development for outbreak, epidemic and pandemic threats

On 25 and 26 October, the Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) held a Roundtable on the power of collaboration to address medical countermeasures R&D for epidemic and pandemic threats. Global health partners in attendance included WHO, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, African CDC and US BARDA, amongst others.

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how such threats are a massive risk to the globalised world and how important cooperation of likeminded organisations and countries at regional and global level has become. By identifying opportunities for complementary investments and sharing of knowledge and expertise, such collaboration could help drive breakthroughs in science and technology, leading to transformative advancements in the fastest and most efficient way and supporting global health equity and impact.

Throughout the Roundtable, all present took stock of current efforts and achievements in vaccine development and how to find opportunities for collaboration in the future. A focus was placed on how to better work together on practical challenges and explore opportunities for more complementary approaches to public operational and financial investments in vaccine development.

Laurent Muschel, acting Head of HERA, said: “Global challenges like pandemics and climate change require international collaboration. We need to foster a closer collaboration that will drive innovation and ensure concrete progress in vaccine and therapeutics development. I fully support HERA and CEPI hosting this Roundtable and the participation of international and regional agencies leading on vaccine development for outbreak, epidemic and pandemic threats. Health is a global affair.”

CEO of CEPI, Dr Richard Hatchett, added: “Partnership is crucial if we are to respond more quickly and equitably to emerging viral threats. As COVID-19 so potently demonstrated, stopping, or preventing the next pandemic, is not something a single country or organisation can do alone. The roundtable with HERA and other R&D funders enables us to identify synergies and the potential for complementary financing so that we can prepare ahead of time, before the next Disease X strikes.”