Vaccine Procurement Forum (VPF)
An annual peer-to-peer learning event to foster knowledge exchange and best practice sharing among vaccine procurement practitioners to strengthen skills and understanding on diverse vaccine procurement topics.
The Vaccine Procurement Forum (VPF), previously known as Vaccine Procurement Practitioners Exchange Forum (VPPEF), is an annual event that promotes knowledge exchange and best practice sharing in order to strengthen participants’ skills and understanding on diverse vaccine procurement topics.
The long-term goal for the VPF is to support countries and their procurement processes to ensure sustainable access to quality assured vaccines, which is also one of the core principles of the Immunization Agenda 2030. Since its launch in 2015, it has evolved to become a well-established peer-to-peer learning forum that supports not only countries that procure vaccines through UNICEF but also all self-procuring countries.
The VPF is an annual global or regional forum centered on a specific theme drawn from shared country office priorities. Participation is by invitation, based on criteria reviewed each year.
Below are some overviews of the most recent VPF meetings. More information, including ongoing e-discussions around these topics, is available on the Vaccine Procurement Practitioners Network .
Inter-regional VPF in 2025
On 11–12 November 2025, the Inter-regional VPF, co-hosted by UNICEF Supply Division, Middle East and North Africa Regional Office, and the Egypt Country Office, convened 74 participants from 19 countries across six regions in Cairo, Egypt. The Forum brought together government health and procurement officials, alongside relevant partners from WHO.
The two-day Forum tackled one of the field's most pressing questions: how can countries integrate locally and regionally produced vaccines into their procurement strategies without compromising supply security or equity?
Participants left with a clear message – localization is not a quick switch, but rather a phased, evidence-based transition that must be grounded in each country's programmatic needs, costs, regulatory capacity and market realities. The end output should be tailored to each country's context to ensure that the right procurement modality – or mix of modalities – is leveraged to ensure a sustainable and uninterrupted vaccine supply.
Regional VPFs in 2024
In 2024, UNICEF Supply Division hosted two regional VPFs in collaboration with UNICEF regional offices. The VPFs brought together vaccine procurement experts in the respective regions to discuss experiences, lessons learned, and best practices on immunization planning, forecasting and budgeting for sustainable vaccine procurement.
On 4-5 November 2024, UNICEF Supply Division and UNICEF East Asia and Pacific (EAP) Regional Office co-hosted the EAP regional VPF in Bangkok, Thailand. The VPF convened over 50 participants from eight countries from the region. It facilitated peer-to-peer learning focusing on routine immunization planning, forecasting, and integrating budgets with procurement strategies and National Immunization Strategy (NIS) objectives to ensure access to supply and avoid future outbreaks.
The Forum provided an opportunity to discuss regional collaboration to develop sustainable approaches for vaccine procurement and stock management, including a panel session on regional pooled procurement.
On 28-29 November 2024, UNICEF Supply Division and UNICEF West and Central Africa (WCA) Regional Office co-hosted the WCA regional VPF in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. With over 45 participants from seven countries in the region, the Forum focused on strengthening planning for new vaccine introductions, improving forecasting, and aligning budget execution with NIS objectives. Using human papillomavirus vaccine (HPV) and malaria vaccines as case studies, participants shared lessons learned and best practices around how to optimize vaccine transition processes considering national financing to ensure the sustainable implementation of the introductions.
VPPEF 2023
On June 20–21, 2023, UNICEF Supply Division hosted the annual Vaccine Procurement Practitioners Exchange Forum (VPPEF) in Copenhagen. With 65 participants from 16 countries, the Forum provided a venue for peer-to-peer cooperation among practitioners who had an opportunity to exchange knowledge and lessons learnt, as well as to discuss challenges on sustainable access to vaccines when considering the introduction of a new vaccine.
The Forum used the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine as a deep dive case study for participants to discuss and learn from what topics to consider when deciding on a new vaccine introduction for their immunization programme.
The main focus of the meeting was on participants sharing best practices on how to utilize market intelligence to inform their procurement strategies and decision when considering a new vaccine introduction, as well as which key procurement principles should be examined when developing their strategy.
Ensuring access to sustainable financing for immunization programmes was also explored. The participants reviewed the current situation and challenges faced by their own countries and regions in introducing and continuing with new vaccines, and examined possible mitigating strategies that could be implemented to respond to the challenges identified during the Forum.
Check the perspectives from participants of the event on Sharing knowledge and building skills.
To access VPF(VPPEF)s dated from 2022 and prior, please refer to the VPF page on the VPPN.
