The European Commission announced three new Global Gateway investments during the High-Level Week of the United Nations General Assembly to advance the EU’s Global Health Resilience Initiative in partner countries. The package features a 63,5 Mio. EUR EU guarantee to unlock private investments across Subsahara-Afrika, a 15 Mio. EUR European Investment Bank loan for Colombian biotechnology firm VaxThera, and 60 Mio. EUR in direct EU funding to upgrade primary healthcare in Ethiopia.
Adopted in May 2026, the Global Health Resilience Initiative aims to bolster prevention, preparedness, and response to global health threats while reinforcing health sovereignty in partner regions. These newly unveiled projects combine risk-mitigation guarantees, institutional loans, and direct infrastructure funding to address supply security and local manufacturing needs.
Sub-Sahara-Afrika: First Mover Health Investors Fund
To mobilize private capital in Subsahara-Afrika, the European Commission and Cardano Development signed an agreement establishing the First Mover Health Investors Fund, backed by a 63,5 Mio. EUR EU guarantee provided through the European Fund for Sustainable Development Plus (EFSD+). According to the European Commission, the guarantee is structured to mobilize approximately 150 Mio. EUR in private investments targeting growth-stage enterprises operating within the health and nutrition sectors.
The fund directs capital toward areas traditionally viewed by conventional investors as too high-risk, including local manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, medical devices, consumables, and broader healthcare innovation. Accompanying technical assistance funded by the EU supports investee companies in meeting international quality standards and strengthening operational impact. Cardano Development operates as an incubator and investor scaling financial institutions across frontier and emerging markets.
Colombia: VaxThera Vaccine Production Expansion
In South America, the European Investment Bank (EIB) granted a 15 Mio. EUR risk capital loan to Colombian biotechnology firm VaxThera as the initial tranche of a financing package scaling up to 35 Mio. EUR. The European Commission supports this transaction via an EFSD+ guarantee under the Human Development Accelerator (HDX) program.
The financing helps fund the construction, equipment acquisition, and validation phases for VaxThera’s commercial manufacturing facility. Up to 1,5 Mio. also EUR in technical assistance targets the research and development pipeline for three infectious disease vaccine candidates. The initiative pairs Colombian operational capacity with European technology to scale regional manufacturing of essential medical products and enhance epidemic response capabilities.
Ethiopia: Primary Healthcare Modernization Package
The European Commission finalized a 60 Mio. EUR investment package with Ethiopia dedicated to improving the quality and accessibility of the country’s primary healthcare infrastructure. The funding supports the construction, rehabilitation, and equipping of health facilities to meet operational standards in underserved communities.
Beyond physical infrastructure, the package addresses underlying health determinants including access to safe water, sanitation, nutrition, and the mitigation of gender-based violence. Program funds also extend digital health insurance services to remote regions while supporting biomedical training and technical assistance for local pharmaceutical manufacturing and supply chain management.
Strategic Priorities and Historical Financing
The Global Health Resilience Initiative operates around five core priorities: establishing resilient, country-led health systems; strengthening international prevention and response mechanisms; diversifying supply chains for critical health products; reinforcing the global health architecture; and countering disinformation and foreign information manipulation.
Between 2021 and 2025, the EU mobilized more than 6 Mrd. EUR in global public and private financing for health. Through the broader Global Gateway strategy, the EU and its member states have unlocked upwards of 2 Mrd. EUR specifically directed toward regional manufacturing of vaccines, medicines, and health technologies in Africa.
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