The fund has since raised an additional $250 million from national governments, but it needs another $750 million to reach its goal of providing 80percentt of the children in poor countries with basic vaccines and new vaccines where needed by 2005.
One in five children still lacks access to basic vaccines, and across Africa, the average immunization rate stubbornly hovers around 77percentt.
Forty-plus years since EPI launched -- and more than halfway through the Decade of Vaccines -- more than 21 million infants still miss basic vaccines and routine immunization services every year.
In 1992, the two ministries initiated the Expanded Programme of Immunization (EPI) in their respective territories, and UNICEF supplied the basic vaccines and equipment.
In addition to introducing new vaccines into the poorest countries, this new phase of GAVI's work will focus on improving immunization with the basic vaccines and integration of other life-saving interventions into immunization programmes.
UNICEF is working with the ministry of health to target children and mothers in these hard-to-reach areas, working to provide basic vaccines and vitamin supplements, as well as improving child health monitoring.
Across the West Bank and Gaza, UNICEF is providing basic vaccines and immunization-related supplies, as well as vitamin A, vitamin D and iron supplements, as well as increasing knowledge on basic nutrition practices and strengthening health workers' capacity for infant and child care.
Twenty years ago, children in both developed and developing countries received the same basic vaccines - and their availability was more than adequate.
Only 61% of children had been provided with all basic vaccines (BCG, measles and full courses of polio and DPT), fewer than in all other surveyed cities except Meerut.
Just ask the 15 million predominantly poor children who still don't receive any of the basic vaccines that you and I take for granted.
