IAVI at the World Vaccine Congress Washington 2025

On April 21-24, more than 4,500 attendees are expected to gather in Washington, D.C., for the World Vaccine Congress (WVC) 2025. This event presents a much-needed opportunity for experts in vaccine research and development (R&D) to convene, share knowledge, and chart the path forward for preparedness in a dynamic global health landscape. Recent outbreaks of Sudan virus and Marburg virus reiterate the need for long-term investment in scientific research, pandemic preparedness, and accessible vaccines for emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). The congress agenda covers these topics and more across the vaccine R&D spectrum.

IAVI leaders look forward to engaging with colleagues and participating in timely conversations at this year’s WVC. Speakers include Marion Gruber, Ph.D., M.S., vice president of public health and regulatory science; Swati Gupta, DrPH, MPH, vice president and head of EIDs and epidemiology; and Shelly Malhotra, M.A., vice president of global access and external affairs.

During the pre-congress workshops on April 21, Gruber will join the morning Combination Vaccines workshop as well as a Biodefense panel entitled “What are the remaining bottlenecks holding us back from achieving the 100 day mission?” at 2 p.m. EDT. Malhotra is also contributing to the pre-congress Monoclonal Antibodies (mAbs) for Infectious Diseases workshop with a presentation on “mAbs to prevent vertical transmission of HIV: a pathway to impact” at 10:50 a.m EDT. This directly builds on IAVI and our partners’ recent reports regarding mAb access in Africa and peri- and post-natal HIV transmission.

Gruber will then kick off the first official day of the congress with a keynote panel “Prophylactic mAbs – coming of age” at 2:50 p.m. EDT on April 22. She will discuss the evolving role of pre-exposure prophylaxis antibodies in a range of infectious diseases with peers from Drexel University College of Medicine, AstraZeneca, Merck Research Laboratories, Invivyd, and Bloomberg News.

Finally, Gupta is set to wrap up the remaining days of the congress by helming the Emerging & Re-emerging Diseases track. Don’t miss her talk on “Building innovative partnership models and sustainable models for outbreak pathogens” on April 23 at 9:10 a.m. EDT and her opening remarks on April 24 at 9 a.m. EDT.

We hope to see you at these sessions or on IAVI’s LinkedIn and Instagram pages, where we will share major takeaways from the WVC 2025. View IAVI’s full schedule.