GSK and Save the Children are working together towards a world where no child suffers from a vaccine preventable disease and every child’s health is protected.

GSK and Save the Children’s vision is of a world where no child suffers from a vaccine preventable disease. Together, over the next 5 years we are continuing our commitment to contribute to global and national efforts to increase child vaccination rates and therefore reduce the number of ‘zero dose’ children – those who have never had a vaccination. Working with communities, government and local and global partners, we will develop, pilot and implement tailored approaches in Ethiopia and Nigeria to reach zero dose children in diverse settings. By sharing what works, the partnership will encourage others to adopt successful approaches, helping even more children and communities stay healthy, happy and thriving.

‘Zero dose’ children – those who have never had any routine vaccination – are the most likely to contract diseases like polio, measles and cholera. As vaccination rates drop, these preventable diseases are appearing in places where they haven’t been seen for decades, and can be life-threatening. Nowhere has this been felt more starkly than in Africa. The continent has the highest number of zero dose children in the world – 8.7 million. More than a third live in Nigeria and Ethiopia alone.

Ifra Mahamud, 25, a health worker carrying out vaccinations in Degehabur District in the Somali Region, Ethiopia.

Over the next five years and with a new £15 million investment, GSK and Save the Children’s goal is to significantly increase the number of children receiving vaccinations in the areas where we’ll be working in Ethiopia and Nigeria. We will use our combined expertise and 10 years of experience working together to develop pilot and implement tailored approaches to reach zero dose children in diverse settings.

By working with communities, governments and partner organisations, and by sharing our findings on what works, we aim to make sure our solutions can be used by others and incorporated into national policy. And our robust research will help us advocate for more children around the world to receive vaccinations, so they stay healthy, happy and thriving.

Together we are:

  • Supporting health services to improve the health, wellbeing and survival of children and families
  • Helping communities protect and promote children's health
  • Responding to emergencies, including working to better anticipate and prepare for emergencies
  • Calling for change to put Universal Health Coverage, access to medicines and vaccines for children at the top of the global health agenda and policy discussions
  • Engaging GSK employees globally to fundraise and volunteer.
We're celebrating 10 years together in partnership!

10 years ago we joined together with a mission to reduce preventable deaths and illness of children under the age of five. We've accomplished a huge amount in that time and now we're planning for the next phase of our groundbreaking partnership. Learn more here.

Partnership success

Third Sector Business Charity Award Winner

Our partnership was voted for three years running as the “most admired” corporate partnership in the C&E Barometer’s survey of businesses and non-governmental organisations and received awards for Best Business Charity Partnership, Best Employee Engagement Scheme and Social Responsibility award. For 2022, GSK and Save the Children received the Business Charity Award for Best emergency response project. See link for more information.

About us

GSK is a science-led global healthcare company with a special purpose: to help people do more, feel better, live longer. For further information please visit www.gsk.com/about-us.

Save the Children exists to help every child reach their full potential. In more than 100 countries, including the UK, we make sure children stay safe, healthy, and keep learning. For a century we’ve stood up for children’s rights and made sure their voices are heard. When a crisis hits, we support families and stay by their sides to help them recover. To find out more go to www.savethechildren.org.uk.

image credit

Sarah Waiswa / Save the Children | Léonard Pongo / Save the Children | Hanna Adcock / Save the Children