The GOARN Fund, a Nonprofit Foundation
Powering rapid response to global health emergencies
We mobilize resources for WHO's Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN), supporting 300+ partners who build health system resilience and deploy teams rapidly when health emergencies threaten communities worldwide.
Who We Are
The Nonprofit Foundation Behind GOARN
Since 2000, the WHO Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) has led global efforts in disease surveillance and outbreak response coordination. We are the dedicated nonprofit foundation ensuring they have the resources to rapidly detect, verify, and respond to public health threats.
Funding Critical Response When Every Hour Counts
When Ebola strikes in West Africa, cholera surges in conflict zones, or novel pathogens emerge, GOARN deploys expert teams to respond—while strengthening local capacities in preparedness and information sharing. Our foundation ensures they can respond swiftly, both before and during a crisis.
We provide the financial backbone for rapid deployment of epidemiologists, laboratory specialists, infection control experts, and logisticians to outbreak zones before local health systems are overwhelmed.
Every dollar donated directly funds preparedness, capacity strengthening, emergency response operations, technical assistance, laboratory diagnostics, and the coordination infrastructure that connects 300+ global partners across 80 countries.
300+
Technical Partners
137
Response Missions
79
Countries Served
What We Fund
How Your Donation Makes Impact
An outbreak anywhere is a threat everywhere. In a world with increasing rates of infectious disease outbreaks, we help finance the critical surveillance infrastructure and rapid-response capabilities enabling GOARN to contain outbreaks before they become pandemics.
Emergency Deployment
Fund rapid mobilization of expert teams to outbreak zones, covering travel, accommodation, safety equipment, and field operations for responders who deploy within 48 hours of an alert.
Laboratory Support
Finance diagnostic testing, sample shipping, biosafety equipment, and technical assistance to help countries quickly identify pathogens and implement effective control measures.
Expert Networks
Support maintenance of standby rosters of 600+ trained experts in epidemiology, infection prevention, risk communication, and emergency operations management.
Coordination Systems
Enable 24/7 coordination hubs that connect WHO, ministries of health, NGOs, and technical institutions for seamless information sharing during emergencies.
Capacity Building
Train the next generation of outbreak responders through field epidemiology programs, simulation exercises, and mentorship opportunities in real emergency settings.
Operational Research
Support studies that improve outbreak response methods, develop new field tools, and generate evidence for best practices shared across the global health security community.
Real Impact
Response in Action
"When we detected unusual pneumonia cases, GOARN teams arrived in 36 hours with diagnostic equipment and expertise. Their rapid support helped us contain the outbreak to our province and prevented national spread."
— Dr. Sarah Kimani, Provincial Director of Health, Kenya
"The laboratory training GOARN provided meant our team could confirm cholera cases in hours instead of days. That speed saved lives during our rainy season outbreak."
— Laboratory Chief, Ministry of Health, USA
Board of Directors & Officers
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Ali S. Khan, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A.
Serving as President of the GOARN Fund, Dr. Ali Khan has led a decades-long career aimed at improving global health. With 23 years at the CDC, he was a lead architect of the U.S. National Health Security Program and has led numerous global responses to emerging infectious diseases, including Ebola, SARS, and avian influenza. In 2014, he retried form the U.S. Public Health Service, transitioning to Retired Assistant Surgeon General, and became the Dean of the College of Public Health at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
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Howard Fredrick Hahn, J.D., LL.M.
Serving as Secretary of the GOARN Fund, Howard Hahn specializes in health care, tax-exempt organizations, and non-profit law. He is an attorney with Kutak Rock LLP in Omaha, Nebraska. A Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, he has decades of experience advising nonprofit boards on governance and tax compliance. He currently serves on the board of OneWorld Community Health Centers, based in Omaha, Nebraska.
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Andreas Jansen, M.D.
Serving as Treasurer of the GOARN Fund, Dr. Andreas Jansen is a leading expert in public health intelligence and infectious disease surveillance, with a primary focus on strengthening international networks and standards for early outbreak detection and pandemic preparedness. Dr. Jansen currently serves as the Head of the Centre for International Health Protection at the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin.
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Maureen Lichtveld, M.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Maureen Lichtveld is the Dean of the School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh and the Jonas Salk Chair in Population Health. A member of the National Academy of Medicine, she has over 35 years of experience in environmental health, disaster preparedness, and community resilience, previously serving 18 years at the CDC and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.
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John J. Lowe, PH.D.
Dr. John Lowe is the Chair and a Professor for the Department of Environmental, Agricultural, and Occupational Health at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Dr. Lowe is recognized for his expertise in infection prevention and control of emerging infectious diseases and special pathogens, including COVID-19, Ebola, Lassa fever, and Influenza.
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Michael J. Ryan, M.D.
Dr. Michael Ryan served the WHO for nearly three decades, most recently as the director of the WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme since 2017. An epidemiologist and a former trauma surgeon, he has worked to eradicate the spread of diseases such as Rift Valley fever, SARS, Ebola, and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever. In 2019, he assisted with the creation of the Global Preparedness Report for the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, which strives to highlight the current state of preparedness internationally.
Support Emergency Response Worldwide
Your contribution directly funds capacity strengthening, rapid deployments, and laboratory diagnostics that stop outbreaks before they spread.
