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A new financial intermediary fund (FIF) for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (PPR) has been established internationally, with financial commitments from multiple countries including India.
Hosted by the World Bank and with technical support from the World Health Organization (WHO), the fund will provide additional, long-term financing to strengthen PPR capabilities in low- and middle-income countries and address critical gaps at the national, regional, and global levels.
The first calls for proposals for investments to be funded by the FIF will open in November 2022, the WHO said.
Committment from others
The fund was developed with broad support from members of the G20 and beyond. “Over $1.4 billion in financial commitments have already been announced and more are expected in the coming months,” the note said, adding that commitments have been made by Australia, Canada, China, the European Commission, France, Germany, the United States and India, to name a few. Commitments have also been made by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and Wellcome Trust.
“Investing now will save lives and resources for the years to come. We welcome the broad support from the international community for this new, multilateral financial intermediary fund at the World Bank to help low- and middle-income countries and regions become better prepared for global health crises and are pleased to have been able to proceed quickly in establishing the fund,” said World Bank Group President David Malpass.
Strengthening capacities
The fund’s establishment follows approval by the World Bank’s Board of Directors on June 30, 2022. The World Bank will serve as the FIF’s trustee and host the Secretariat, which will include technical staff seconded from the World Health Organization (WHO), the note said.
Finances from the fund could go towards strengthening and sustaining PPR capacity in areas such as zoonotic disease surveillance, laboratories, emergency communication, coordination and management, critical health workforce capacities and community engagement, it added.
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