A new global stockpile of mpox vaccines is scheduled to begin operations later this month, replacing the more temporary vaccine-allocation arrangements created during the 2024 international mpox emergency.
The mechanism is funded by Gavi and coordinated through the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision, whose partners include WHO, UNICEF, Médecins Sans Frontières and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
Why a stockpile changes outbreak response
During an outbreak, the value of a vaccine depends partly on how quickly doses can reach the places where transmission is occurring.
Countries that do not hold large domestic reserves can lose time negotiating purchases or competing for limited supply. A centrally managed stockpile is intended to shorten that delay and allocate vaccines according to outbreak need.
The International Coordinating Group already manages emergency vaccine stockpiles for other diseases. The mpox programme now brings that model into a longer-term response structure.
What is changing from 2024
During the 2024 mpox Public Health Emergency of International Concern, WHO and partners created an Access and Allocation Mechanism to distribute vaccines.
The new stockpile is designed as a more durable system rather than an ad hoc emergency arrangement. Gavi's board approved the mechanism in 2025, and the stockpile was formally launched on 27 August 2026.
WHO says all countries will be able to request access when responding to outbreaks.
What the stockpile does not solve
A stockpile does not remove the need for surveillance, laboratory diagnosis, contact tracing, community engagement or local vaccination capacity.
Nor does vaccine availability automatically mean vaccines will reach the people at highest risk. Allocation rules, cold-chain logistics, trained vaccinators and public trust remain essential.
Mpox also includes different viral clades and affects populations differently across outbreaks, which means response strategies need to be adapted rather than applied identically everywhere.
Why this matters
Outbreak preparedness is often built during a crisis and dismantled when attention moves elsewhere. A permanent stockpile is one way of converting emergency lessons into standing infrastructure.
The practical measure of success will be whether countries facing future outbreaks can request doses, receive them quickly and use them before transmission expands substantially.
Primary source
- World Health Organization, Gavi, UNICEF, IFRC and MSF. Global initiative launched to improve access to mpox vaccines. 2 September 2026. https://www.who.int/news/item/02-09-2026-global-initiative-launched-to-improve-access-to-mpox-vaccines