At the 2025 GAVI 6.0 Replenishment Summit in Brussels, former Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama issued a powerful moral challenge to the global community, urging nations to prioritise children’s health over military might.
His speech called on donor countries to re-examine their spending priorities and commit to funding vaccines that could save hundreds of millions of lives.
Mahama highlighted GAVI’s goal to raise $9 billion between 2026 and 2030 to immunise 500 million children globally. He juxtaposed this target against the staggering cost of modern warfare, revealing that a single B-2 Spirit bomber—one of which was recently used in Iran—costs over $2 billion.
According to Mahama, the entire GAVI fundraising effort equates to the price of just four of these bombers.
“It’s a choice between taking lives and saving them,” he stated, pressing home the argument that investing in immunisation is not just a health decision, but a moral imperative. “Surely, the world can afford the cost of four bombers to save 500 million children.”
GAVI, a public-private partnership launched in 2000, has helped immunise over one billion children worldwide, preventing an estimated 17.3 million deaths.
The summit seeks renewed commitments to fund its 2026–2030 strategy, which includes rolling out new vaccines, increasing coverage in low-income countries, and strengthening healthcare systems.
While global financial pressures persist, Mahama’s address was a call to conscience—a reminder that amid economic and geopolitical uncertainty, the true measure of leadership lies in the willingness to protect the vulnerable. The former president joined a growing chorus advocating for bold, life-affirming global action as GAVI continues its vital mission to deliver vaccines to those who need them most.
