Contingency Fund for Emergencies: Enabling Quick Action to Save Lives

The Contingency Fund for Emergencies (CFE), established by the World Health Assembly in May 2015 following a review of WHO’s response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, rapidly makes available small amounts of funding for WHO’s initial response activities. The CFE provides funding during the critical gap between the moment the need for an emergency response is identified and the point at which funds from other mechanisms can be released. The CFE’s capacity to release funds (in an initial tranche of up to US$ 500 000) within 24 hours of an emergency request sets it apart from other complementary financing mechanisms such as the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), the World Bank’s Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF), and other pooled funds that have different funding criteria and slower disbursement cycles.