The UK Government is to award funding of £33.2 million to eight vaccine projects targeting deadly diseases, strengthening UK pandemic preparedness and helping protect people worldwide.
This investment will help scientists to develop, test and deploy vaccines faster when new health threats emerge, both supporting people in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) and, in turn, protecting the UK by strengthening pandemic preparedness and improving resilience to future epidemic and pandemic threats.
Supported by the UK Vaccine Network and delivered through Innovate UK, the funding will target diseases including Ebola, plague, Marburg, Lassa fever, Nipah virus, chikungunya and Mayaro. Eight projects will advance promising vaccines, clinical trials and technologies that can make vaccine design and manufacture faster and more effective.
The programme has already demonstrated the value of investing, having supported development of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. This latest investment will help researchers respond more quickly to future threats.
The new awards will build the research, clinical trial and technical capability needed to develop, test and deploy vaccines at speed. They will also help make vaccines affordable, accessible and ready for use in countries at greatest risk.
Health Minister for Science, Innovation and Investment, Chris McDonald, said: “The world remains at risk from new and re-emerging infectious diseases, and outbreaks overseas can quickly become threats to people here at home. This £33.2 million investment will back leading scientists to develop and deploy vaccines faster and strengthen our pandemic preparedness while supporting our world-leading life sciences sector. By investing before a crisis hits, we can better protect the public, save lives and ensure the UK is ready to respond to future threats.”
Ebola has an average case-fatality rate of around 50%, while Marburg outbreaks were reported in Rwanda in 2024 and Tanzania in 2025. There is still no approved Marburg vaccine or antiviral treatment. Sustained research between outbreaks can shorten response times and reduce risks internationally and in the UK.
Recent reports of a suspected pneumonic plague case linked to a laboratory worker’s death in Russia’s Irkutsk region - with nearly 200 contacts placed under precautionary medical observation - are a reminder that the world remains at risk from serious infectious diseases.
Chief Medical Officer for England, Professor Sir Chris Whitty, said: “These projects aim to prevent some of the most dangerous infectious diseases in the world today. The development of safe and effective vaccines for these diseases will strengthen our ability to protect people around the world.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is delivering the awards through the UK Vaccine Network, which accelerates vaccine development against diseases with epidemic potential.
The government is working with Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), to deliver the funding. This includes official development assistance (ODA), which supports the economic development and welfare of eligible developing countries and will fund five of the projects.