Born to Die vaccines campaign/ GAVI Conference

[SnailWhaleTail]

So, further to Mumsnet HQs thread above about attending the GAVI conference on funding childhood vaccines in the developing world I'm really looking forward to Monday 13th when I'll be at the conference to see what transpires and which countries pledge what.

More info from Save the Children

And from ONEs website too

This info is really worth looking at and I'll post more as I get it.

Any comments on the campaign or points of discussion would be really interesting to hear.

nearly time for pledges to be announced; I will be back with numbers.

Damnyou: I'm saying equally jolly-ly 'Hi, lovely to meet you, I'm with Mumsnet'. Usually met with a confused face!

Will be meeting a GAVI official after the press conference. Any other questions you would like answered?

LindsayWagner: interesting article, that's the sort of thing that I'm hoping to ask the later on.

I've just had a very nice chat with ONE about issues of the longevity of the programme and peripherals such as medical consumables and healthcare professionals. His point is that all of these things are important and are things which will be considered by GAVI in partnership with the 72 countries which are eligible for funding but that the focus of the funding is the vaccine itself over a period of 5 years, with the further periods being funded by subsequent pledges.

Preliminary numbers are the the UK is pledging $1.335 million, followed by the Gates foundation at $1,000million, Norway $677 million, USA with $450 million the next biggest donors are the Netherlands, Australia and France. All in all the aim of the conference was to raise $3.7billion and in fact $4.3 billion was raised.

The press conference was very interesting and questions raised were what we wanted to know on the whole. Predictably the Daily Mail asked why the UK was giving aid to anyone when we are an impoverished nation ourselves!

GAVI press release post-pledges

Wow - you've done a cracking job SWT. Lots to take in, will digest and return..

I think the sentiment behind the campaign is full of all the best intention, however I find myself cross that those in power, and indeed those without, see vaccinations as the only solution. yes, vaccines can appear to 'solve' a lot of problems on first impression, but we need to be wary of the hidden problems they incur along the way. This rather large amount of money invested in the guise of western developed countries saving the 3rd world is infact problematic. As a nation we should be thinking more strategically about how to help these young mothers help themselves. Turning up to inject the masses is not, in the long term, the right approach and I would be more impressed if Mumsnet could take this stance - helping families see the bigger picture.

Idealism: thanks for your comments, firstly I think that 'those in power' don't at all see vaccines as the be all and end all and a lot of the message of this conference was that this is the first step on a long road rather than a magic bullet, hence the questions we've all been asking on sustainability, longevity, the role of the HCP, issues of infection control, matters of logistics etc and as soon as I've gone through my notes on the press conference I'll report back more fully on these points.

Andrew Mitchell did emphasise that the 0.7% figure commited has not changed but what they are trying to do is spend wisely and acknowledge the need for transparency in spending and focusing on measurable results, which is I think what you're saying when you mention strategy. In David Cameron's opening address he made the point that this is a step which will be an opening to allow the countries themselves to be a partnership rather than a passive recipient of 'charity'. The whole conference was about strategic first steps in autonomy for developing countries by giving a measure of equality with the first world.

I'm interested to know which parts of the coverage you watched or which papers/journals you've read to draw the conclusion that GAVI thinks this a magic bullet?

I'll be back tomorrow with a more coherent report of the questions asked and answered at the press conference.

Sounds like a good day SWT. Which bit was the most memorable?

idealism: are you making an anti-immunisation point, or an anti-aid point? Or a bit of both? Don't mean this to sound aggressive, am just wondering.

Pram: it was a fabulous day all round, seeing close up what ONE (the lobbying group) actually DO was great and I really found that people were willing to answer any questions I had or find someone who could answer my questions.

Watching DC's speech in the Social Media Room whilst composing a post on mumsnet on an ipod with one hand and tweeting with the other I really felt part of the whole 'can do' attitude. I felt really pleased on behalf of all the lobbyists that they were so chuffed that their hard work had achieved its aim.

Going into the press conference and hearing the Q and A firsthand.

Hearing Ellen J-S speak (and seeing her fabulous clothes).

Hearing Bill Gates speak very modestly about his achievements.

The people could not have been kinder or more helpful and it was a really positive experience to be able to get a sense of all the work that goes on in the background of these events. Thanks Mumsnet and ONE!

I 'm making an point about immunisation being the be-all, magic answer, which is certainly the way it has been reported on some news channels/ radio today.

yes, I am anti-immunisation, which is a hugely personal, and controversial decision I have taken. I hope people will respect my choice as I do theirs....

I'd hate mums in developing countries to not be given a choice, and whilst the choice for them is a much starker one, they still deserve the freedom to make an informed choice. It's a big dilemma that aid faces, a brave person who tackles it head on with politicians. it is easy for us to sit in our comfortable lives debating it, but I feel strongly that parents should learn about the negative long-term consequences of vaccination, what a vaccine contains (highly toxic adjuvants that a vulnerable child may not be able to physically deal with) and an increasing dependancy on western society which is reminiscent of colonialism.

Thanks idealism, fair enough!