Unitaid launches new funding opportunity to heat-proof health products ahead of COP30

The deadline for proposal submission is Friday 23 January 2026 at 12:00 (noon) CET 

As governments prepare to gather at COP30 to confront the escalating impacts of climate change, Unitaid is highlighting the urgent need to better understand the possible impact of high heat and humidity on the safety, quality, and effectiveness of essential medicines, diagnostics, and other health products. 

With a new US$10 million funding opportunity, Unitaid is inviting proposals to generate evidence on the risks climate change poses to essential health products. The initiative aims to inspire innovative solutions to improve heat stability of health products – ensuring they remain safe and effective in a world that is growing hotter each year. Unitaid has also published a new knowledge paper, “Heat-proofing health products: Adapting to a hotter planet” to compliment and inform funding proposals. 

Much of the world experiences environmental conditions that today’s health products were never designed to withstand. From production to last-mile delivery, storage and use, heat and humidity threaten product integrity, risking access to lifesaving care for communities in regions most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.  

For example, during production, heatwaves can strain cooling systems at manufacturing sites, while droughts may disrupt water supplies essential for pharmaceutical production. In Africa, where 70–90% of medicines and 99% of vaccines are imported, products could face temperatures of up to 60°C or more during transport or storage in non-climate controlled shipping containers. At the point of care, limited access to reliable cold-chain infrastructure may expose diagnostics and medicines to more variations in temperature and humidity that could reduce the product’s effectiveness. 

As climate change accelerates, these kinds of stresses could become more frequent and more severe – particularly in low-and middle-income countries where health products are needed most. Understanding when and where products are vulnerable will be critical to developing climate-smart tools and systems that maintain quality and effectiveness in a changing world.  

Building on findings from Unitaid’s earlier report, “From milligrams to megatons”, which assessed climate risks for 10 key health products, the new funding announced today will generate evidence and explore innovations that can make health products more heat-stable. The call for proposals seeks projects that: 

• Generate evidence on how extreme temperatures and humidity affect product quality, stability, and performance, now and in the future; 

• Identify innovation gaps and map/analyze the solution landscape 

• Advance targeted, practical solutions that demonstrate the ability to protect product quality 

This investment supports Unitaid’s Climate and Health Strategy, which aims to make global health systems more resilient to environmental pressures while minimizing their climate impact. 

Key dates: 

• The closing date for receipt of full proposals is Friday 23 January 2026 at 12:00 (noon) CET. Applications received past the indicated deadline will not be considered.  

• Unitaid will host a webinar to present the scope and content of the call for proposals and answer any process-related questions on Wednesday 5 November at 16:00 CET. 

Learn more about how to submit a proposal here.