Canadians donate $9.6 million to help vaccinate nearly 4 million people in low-income countries

UNICEF Canada is thanking Canadians for donating over $9.6 million towards global vaccination efforts through the #GiveAVax campaign, which the Government of Canada will match.

“Thanks to the exceptional generosity of Canadians, we are able to deliver millions of life-saving vaccines to frontline health workers and vulnerable populations in lower-income countries around the globe. Working together to urgently vaccinate the world is one of the most effective ways to help children, their families and their communities move beyond the pandemic,” said David Morley, President and CEO of UNICEF Canada.

For every eligible donation made to UNICEF’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts before September 30, the Government of Canada will contribute an equivalent amount.

More than 40,000 Canadians from across the country donated to UNICEF’s global vaccination efforts, and community partnerships, including Love My Neighbour, helped build momentum to raise funds needed to help fully vaccinate nearly 4 million people in low-income countries against COVID-19.

UNICEF Canada expressed gratitude for the leadership of the Government of Canada for launching the matching fund and encouraging Canadians to give generously for this unprecedented initiative.

“Canadians have shown time and again how generous they can be in times of need. With gratitude for our good fortune we can reach out, give back and help others get their vaccine too,” said Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of International Development.

As the global leader in vaccine delivery, UNICEF has been tasked by the COVAX Facility with delivering 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to countries around the globe in the first quarter of 2022.

So far, COVAX has delivered more than 430 million vaccine doses to 144 countries.

According to the latest forecast, a total of approximately 1.2 billion doses will be available for the lower-income economies supported by the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC) by the end of 2021. This is enough to protect 20 per cent of the population, or 40 per cent of all adults, in all 92 AMC economies with the exception of India.

Canadians can still donate life-saving vaccines at www.unicef.ca/GiveAVax.