Geneva (GNP): A global initiative to establish a stockpile of mpox vaccines was launched on August 27, creating a long-term mechanism to ensure countries have reliable access to vaccines when responding to mpox outbreaks.
The new global stockpile, set to begin operations later this month, was approved by the Board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in 2025 and is funded by Gavi while being coordinated by the International Coordinating Group (ICG) on Vaccine Provision.
The ICG’s partner organizations include the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO), bringing together the same network responsible for coordinating emergency vaccine supplies during past disease outbreaks.
The initiative builds directly on the Access and Allocation Mechanism established in 2024 during the previous mpox Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), extending that framework into a permanent structure meant to ensure timely and equitable vaccine access going forward.
The need for such a mechanism has grown more pressing as mpox continues to cause outbreaks worldwide, with two-thirds of reported cases occurring in the African Region. Between January 1, 2022 and July 31, 2026, a total of 145 countries and territories reported 190,683 confirmed cases and 529 deaths linked to the disease.
Mpox spreads primarily through close physical contact between people, while animal-to-human transmission continues in parts of Africa, sustaining the ongoing risk of fresh outbreaks. The disease can cause severe illness, particularly in children and individuals with weakened immune systems, making the stockpile’s role in enabling faster vaccination all the more significant in containing outbreaks, preventing severe disease and saving lives.
Gavi CEO Sania Nishtar said lower-income countries were left behind on vaccine access during the 2022 mpox outbreak, prompting the creation of a mechanism open to all nations regardless of ability to pay. IFRC Secretary General Jagan Chapagain said mpox remains a serious illness and called the stockpile’s launch important progress toward ensuring vaccines reach the most at-risk communities.
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MSF’s International Medical Coordinator, Daniela Garone, said the stockpile allows for equal vaccine allocation bsed on outbreak demand and impact, given the coexistence of different mpox variants affecting different populations.
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said mpox can be devastating for children due to stigma, disrupted learning and isolation from family, and said the initiative will help deliver vaccines quickly to the children and communities most at risk.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the stockpile marks a step toward a more sustainable and equitable model for mpox outbreak response, built on an approach that has already proven effective for other emergency vaccines.
Taken together, the partner statements point to a shared goal among global health agencies: moving from the reactive, uneven vaccine access seen during earlier mpox emergencies toward a standing system capable of responding to outbreaks as they emerge, rather than after they escalate.
