UNICEF and Gavi launch call to manufacturers in support of accelerated access to Bundibugyo Ebolavirus vaccines

NEW YORK/GENEVA/COPENHAGEN, 24 June 2026 - In a move designed to accelerate access to a vaccine against Bundibugyo Ebolavirus disease, UNICEF and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance today announced the launch of a Request for Expression of Interest (EOI) to gather information from vaccine developers and manufacturers on their plans to develop a vaccine against the disease. Building on Gavi's recent commitment of US$40 million to support accelerated vaccine access, this EOI will help inform how that financing can best support manufacturing scale-up and rapid access to doses if and when they become available.

The Expression of Interest, issued by UNICEF today, builds on ongoing engagement with manufacturers and partners including WHO and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and will support an expedited assessment and prioritisation of the most promising vaccine candidates. Any subsequent agreements support manufacturing readiness - including the production of investigational doses to manufacturing scale-up - for emergency usein outbreak response, in line with appropriate policy recommendations.

The severe and highly lethal Bundibugyo Ebolavirus is the source of the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda. With 1,094 cases confirmed, and 277 deaths in eastern DRC, some of them children, and 20 confirmed cases and two deaths in Uganda, accelerating the development and roll-out of effective and safe vaccines is a critical global priority. While the Gavi-funded global stockpile of vaccines against the Ebola Zaire species - procured and managed by UNICEF on behalf of the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision - has been leveraged several times for outbreak response, there is currently no vaccine available against the Bundibugyo species.

Gavi has committed US$50 million through its First Response Fund (FRF) to support the ongoing outbreak response: up to US$10 million dedicated to safeguarding routine immunization, protection of health care workers, and outbreak response, and up to US$40 million as pull financing to accelerate vaccine access. The EOI will help Gavi design an intervention that leverages this vaccine financing for greatest impact: accelerating manufacturing scale-up of the most promising candidates, supporting regulatory pathways such as WHO Emergency Use Listing (EUL) and WHO prequalification, and establishing access to doses of investigational and licensed vaccines. This will ensure that once a vaccine proves effective and policy recommendations have been issued, doses are available and can be rapidly deployed whether for emergency use prior to WHO EUL or, in the longer term, as part of an established procurement mechanism supporting licensed vaccines.

In the call to developers and manufacturers to provide information about their candidate vaccines - including projected development timelines, product suitability, and alignment with public health priorities - special consideration will be given to proposals where production will be based in Africa. Manufacturer responses will also inform future UNICEF procurement of vaccines.

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Notes to editors:

The Expression of Interest is published on the United Nations Global Marketplace ungm.org.

The Expression of Interest comes on the back of WHO recommendations on prioritization of Bundibugyo ebolavirus vaccine candidates for evaluation in clinical trials and Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI)'s funding to fast track development of vaccine candidates. While CEPI supports early-stage research and clinical development of candidate vaccines, the Gavi-UNICEF EOI is designed to assess manufacturing readiness, scale-up needs and financing approaches to ensure doses can be produced at scale and deployed quickly if candidates prove successful.

About Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is a public-private partnership that helps vaccinate more than half the world's children against some of the world's deadliest diseases. The Vaccine Alliance brings together developing country and donor governments, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccine industry, technical agencies, civil society, the Gates Foundation and other private sector partners. View the full list of donor governments and other leading organisations that fund Gavi's work here.

Since its inception in 2000, Gavi has helped to immunise a whole generation - over 1.2 billion children - and prevented more than 20.6 million future deaths, helping to halve child mortality in 78 lower-income countries. Gavi also plays a key role in improving global health security by supporting health systems as well as funding global stockpiles for Ebola, cholera, meningococcal and yellow fever vaccines. After two decades of progress, Gavi is now focused on protecting the next generation, above all the zero-dose children who have not received even a single vaccine shot. The Vaccine Alliance employs innovative finance and the latest technology - from drones to biometrics - to save lives, prevent outbreaks before they can spread and help countries on the road to self-sufficiency. Learn more at www.gavi.org and connect with us on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, X and YouTube.

For more information, please contact:  

Sara Alhattab | UNICEF New York | +1 917 957 6536 | [email protected]

Jenny Gamming | UNICEF Copenhagen | +45 30 787 661 | [email protected]
Meg Sharafudeen | Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance | +41 79 711 55 54 | [email protected]

Eunice Kilonzo | Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance | +41 76 424 85 03 | [email protected]

UNICEF is the world's leading humanitarian organization focused on children. We work in the most challenging areas to provide protection, healthcare and immunizations, education, safe water and sanitation and nutrition. As part of the United Nations, our unrivaled reach spans more than 190 countries and territories, ensuring we are on the ground to help the most disadvantaged children. While part of the UN system, UNICEF relies entirely on voluntary donations to finance our life-saving work. Please visit unicef.ca and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

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