The Childhood Vaccination Alliance of “la Caixa” Foundation has successfully immunized 162,556 particularly vulnerable boys and girls in Africa and Latin America Thanks to the 283 Murcian companies that have participated in this solidarity action since 2008 for their solidarity.
To this end, an event was held this Tuesday to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Alliance for Childhood VaccinationThe meeting was attended by HRH Infanta Doña Cristina, Director of the International Department of the “la Caixa” Foundation, representatives of CaixaBank, Gavi and the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), as well as part of their businessmen’s project.
The meeting highlighted the 15-year history of this initiative, which aims to combat preventable diseases that pose a huge risk to the lives of minors in their countries of origin due to limited access to health care.. The initiative is promoted by the “la Caixa” foundation together with the African Vaccine Alliance GAVI, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and in collaboration with the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal). Together, they successfully vaccinated a total of 6 million children against pneumonia, a lung infection that remains the leading cause of death among children around the world. Another three million children are vaccinated with the pentavalent vaccine, which protects against diseases such as tetanus or diphtheria.
for it, Childhood vaccination program with donations from the “la Caixa” foundationin addition to small donations from citizens and donations from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, donations were received from 3,700 corporate and financial institution clients across Spain.
all, Nearly 9 million boys and girls have been vaccinated in 10 countries in Africa and Latin America Examples include Mozambique, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Honduras, Mauritania, Nicaragua, Central African Republic, Sudan, Bolivia and Tanzania.
«At the “la Caixa” Foundation, we will continue to work on this project and contribute more to the work of Gavi, because we firmly believe that we must continue to work to avoid infant deaths caused by the lack of vaccines. This is our duty”emphasized Antonio Vila Bertrán, General Manager of the “la Caixa” Foundation.
Reaffirms commitment to reducing infant mortality
Fundraising is calculated according to the matching fund formula, under which all donations received are multiplied by four. This is because for every euro donated, “la Caixa” Foundation will receive one euro, up to a maximum of 2 million euros, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will receive a further two euros, up to a maximum of 4 million euros. . In this way, Gavi can meet 100% of Mozambique’s demand for pneumonia vaccines over the past four years, and 25% of Ethiopia’s needs in 2021 and 2022.
In 2023, the “la Caixa” foundation, Gavi’s first private partner in Europe, has renewed its commitment to the international organization by doubling all donations to the alliance, up to a maximum of 2 million euros.. The project also offers the possibility of donations from third parties. Therefore, the program accepts donations from companies as part of its corporate social responsibility. As a philanthropic initiative to reduce infant mortality, partnership opportunities also extend to CaixaBank’s customers and employees, as well as to society at large.
For its part, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which launched its matching fund initiative in 2011, has also maintained its commitment to double the total amount of all financial contributions to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Gavi) in 2023 , with a maximum limit of 4 million euros, and ISGlobal, which he joined as a strategic partner in 2014 and continues to contribute his scientific and academic experience to the project.
All financial contributions from entities, private companies and society at large are aimed at expanding economic resources to promote immunization of boys and girls in 10 countries in Africa and Latin America.. The main focus is on distributing pneumococcal vaccines in Mozambique and Ethiopia to combat pneumonia, a lung infection that remains the leading cause of death among children worldwide.
Every 42 seconds a child in the world dies from pneumonia
From April 26th to 27th, the “la Caixa” Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the “Every Breath Counts” Alliance organized the second Children’s Pneumonia Forum at the CaixaForum in Madrid, where Gavi also participated this forum. The meeting brought together more than 300 participants, including senior government officials from 14 countries that account for 60% of all childhood pneumonia deaths. The event was also attended by members of the Spanish government, leaders of the United Nations and multilateral development agencies, large donors, NGOs, private companies and the scientific community.
International forum becomes space for debate and analysis of new post-COVID-19 challenges This is followed by decisions on the actions and measures that relevant governments must take to reduce child deaths from pneumonia and accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 3) on child survival.
groundbreaking alliance
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is a public-private alliance uniting developing countries with donorsIncluding governments, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccination industry, technical agencies, civil society, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other private sector partners, including under the name “la Caixa” Foundation-led foundation in Spain.
Since its founding in 2000, its mission has been to save lives, reduce poverty and protect the world from the threats of epidemics and pandemics.. To this end, by the end of 2022, it has helped more than 1 billion children in 78 countries be vaccinated.
What is unique about the Children’s Immunization Alliance of “la Caixa” Foundation is the participation of CaixaBank clients, both companies and individuals, in pioneering European corporate social responsibility projects.. The Alliance for Vaccination of Children has the commitment of the CaixaBank Empresas and CaixaBank Banca Privada teams and their entire network of offices, which is key to communication and fundraising.
To achieve this goal, CaixaBank Empresas carries out extensive awareness-raising work among its clients, offering them the opportunity to contribute to vaccine access and quality in developing countries as an act of social responsibility, allowing them to give back to society.they received from her. For its part, CaixaBank Banca Privada promotes support for Gavi within the framework of its social value project, which supports and encourages the charitable concerns of its clients.
The “la Caixa” foundation has covered 10 countries in Africa and Latin America, including Mozambique, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Honduras, Mauritania, Nicaragua, Central African Republic, Sudan, Bolivia and Tanzania. In recent years, “la Caixa” Foundation has paid special attention to pneumococcal vaccines in Mozambique, where pneumonia is currently the leading cause of infant death. For its part, Gavi was selected for the 2020 Princess of Asturias Award for International Cooperation out of 34 candidates competing for recognition.
“la Caixa” foundation has been building a better world for more than a century
Created in 1904, “la Caixa” Foundation was founded to provide opportunities for those who need it most and to contribute to a more just and equitable society.. This makes it the first private foundation in Spain and one of the most relevant internationally. The priority of the “la Caixa” Foundation is the development of social projects that respond to the great challenges of our time, such as promoting employment for disadvantaged groups, eradicating child poverty, caring for patients with terminal illnesses and promoting positive and active social activities. Healthy aging. Medical research, excellence in training, culture and education are the basis for advancement and equal opportunity and are other strategic lines of action of the Foundation.
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