Commission strengthens global health security with new Global Health Resilience Initiative

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

Today, the European Commission adopted a Global Health Resilience Initiative.This strategy positions the EU as a reliable and frontline actor in global health by scaling up global prevention, preparedness and response to future health threats and addressing resilience gaps in health systems.

It sets out the strategic framework for future EU action so that Europe can respond quicker to health threats and crises in an interconnected world, based on a strong multilateral system and on cooperation with partners. This further reinforces EU strategic autonomy and competitiveness and supports our partners’ transition away from aid dependence and towards health sovereignty.

The Global Health Resilience Initiative puts forward five key priority areas adding the most value to the EU’s contribution to stability and collective action in global health.

1. Promoting a more effective and less fragmented global health architecture.  It is essential to address current challenges, including financing gaps. Enhanced coordination within the EU on global health will be a key focus and the EU will continue to uphold its long-standing commitment to the global health agenda by contributing to joint efforts. The EU has already mobilised over €6 billion for health investments under the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe instrument and has made health a key pillar of the Global Gateway, the EU’s external investment arm.
2. Supporting resilient and country-led health systems. Strong national health systems are the backbone of resilience: countries that can finance, manage and deliver their own essential health services are equipped to respond to crises, protect their populations and maintain continuity of care during shocks. The EU will therefore support partner countries’ transition to health sovereignty through concrete investments and expertise sharing, with a focus on primary health care.
3. Reinforcing international-level prevention, preparedness and response to global health threats and crises. The EU will reinforce global networks for enhanced detection, preparedness and response to epidemic threats. The EU will strengthen its crisis response capacity by ensuring greater availability of medical countermeasures—including therapeutics, vaccines, and diagnostics. The EU will also support a global health and resilience trackerto map global health expenditure.
4. Diversifying global supply chains and manufacturing of key health products. The initiative strengthens EU competitiveness and fosters mutually beneficial partnerships with businesses and authorities in partner countries. It promotes European medical science and technology while also expanding global manufacturing production capacitiesand investment opportunities that support the development of local infrastructure, skills, and jobs. To achieve this, the EU will support the diversification of global supply chains, the development of key health products, and international cooperation on knowledge exchange related to medical countermeasures and surge capacity. The EU will also accelerate the deployment of EU investment tools (such as the Team Europe Initiative on manufacturing and access to vaccines, medicines and health technologies – MAV+), and will seek cooperation with the private sector to support investments in partner countries.
5. Bolstering societal resilience by fostering trust in science and countering health dis- and misinformation to ensure global health policymaking remains anchored in scientific evidence and cooperation. Concretely, the initiative will help improve access to reliable scientific data, strengthen cooperation with partner countries on public health communication, and support efforts to counter false and misleading health information.

To translate these priorities into action, the Global Health Resilience Initiative includes nine flagship measures at national, regional and global levels, with the aim to enhance preparedness, improve coordination and build resilient systems around the world. Their implementation will begin between 2026 and 2027.

Background

The Global Health Resilience Initiative builds on the European Health Union, the Preparedness Union Strategy, the EU Global Health Strategy and Global Gateway investments in partner countries.

Through Global Gateway and the Team Europe approach, and complemented by the Preparedness Union Strategy, the EU mobilises innovative financing tools and pools public and private resources to help partners address investment gaps in areas of mutual interest, strengthening capacity to anticipate, prevent, detect, and respond to cross-border health threats.

The EU has advanced transformative health programmes such as the Team Europe Initiative on manufacturing and access to vaccines, medicines and health technologies in Africa, known as MAV+. To date, MAV+ has invested around €2 billion to address medical supply and demand on the African continent.

The EU’s firm support to multilateralism is exemplified by the recent Global Fund Pledge of €700 million. In 2024-2025, the EU and its Member States also contributed €1.7 billion to the World Health Organisation.

Horizon Europe has contributed nearly € 1 billion to health-related research and innovation. The EU4Health programme has allocated more than € 130 million between 2022 and 2024 to international partners. In humanitarian settings, €745 million was directed specifically to health-related interventions between 2022 and 2025.

For more information

Communication

Factsheet on the nine flagships

European Health Union

EU Global Health Strategy

Global health – Public Health

Health and demography – International Partnerships

Global Gateway – International Partnerships