A Summer at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, During a Pandemic

Pushing for equity in immunization in the age of COVID-19

By: Anna Wong (2L)

Under Articles 25 and 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, every person has a right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. Everyone also has a right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress. This necessarily includes access to vaccine technologies and immunization programmes. However, financial barriers, among other factors, are perpetuating pervasive under-immunization against major infectious diseases in low- and middle-income countries. 

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, is the world’s largest international organization dedicated uniquely to helping finance, procure, and distribute vaccines to these populations. Due to their expertise in this area, Gavi partnered with the World Health Organization and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to operate the COVAX Facility. COVAX is the only international COVID-19 vaccine financing and distribution mechanism mandated to ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines on a global scale.

This summer, I had the privilege of joining Gavi’s in-house legal team as an International Human Rights Program (IHRP) fellow. Working remotely from Toronto, I reported to colleagues in London and Geneva and contributed to various vaccine procurement and financing projects. I primarily worked on COVAX-related contractual matters, but also on smaller projects relating to the use of Gavi’s corporate brand and its official data privacy policy.

I also authored an article on the future of post-pandemic work for the Association of Lawyers in Intergovernmental Finance and Development Organizations (ALIFDO). This was a fantastic opportunity to connect with seasoned lawyers in the international development space and learn about the impact of COVID-19 on their work. It was also inspiring that two of the five lawyers that I interviewed were Canadian-trained lawyers working abroad.

In my personal statement when applying to the Faculty of Law, I described my motivation for attending law school as promoting meaningful legal outcomes in the biomedical, public health, and development sectors. Helping further access to vaccines at this critical global health moment through my fellowship at Gavi was my first step in employing my legal education towards achieving this goal.