New Federal Minister Alabali Radovan: Future-oriented vaccination points!

New Federal Minister Alabali Radovan: Future-oriented vaccination points!

Reem Alabali Radovan, recently appointed Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, introduces herself as a dynamic personality. At the age of 35, she made the leap into the top political league. She took office in Berlin just 16 hours after the call from SPD leader Lars Klingbeil. During her short term in office, she has already received high-ranking guests such as UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. At a first major summit in Brussels on June 25, 2025, she faced the challenges that her new role entails and proudly presented her homeland and the beauties of Schwerin, including Schwerin Castle, which she showed Gates as she introduced him to a piece of her homeland. While she began her career as a clerk in an initial reception center for refugees, she is now planning to bring a breath of fresh air into development policy with an ambitious double budget.

Alabali Radovan and the Gavi vaccination initiative

A central concern of Alabali Radovan is supporting the global vaccination initiative “Gavi”. Germany has agreed to provide a total of 600 million euros for this initiative by 2030. At the Gavi conference in Brussels, she emphasized the relevance of vaccinations to save lives and prevent pandemics. “We invest in prevention to save treatment costs in the long term,” explained Alabali Radovan, emphasizing that collaboration across borders is essential in the fight against disease. Gavi, founded in 2000, has since vaccinated over a billion children, preventing an estimated 20 million deaths. Their goal is to vaccinate half a billion additional children in the coming years. That's an ambitious plan, especially given recent cuts in U.S. foreign aid, which provides the largest source of support for global health programs. Alabali Radovan notes that Germany or the EU cannot compensate for this decline.

The challenges of her term in office

The young minister faces further challenges during her term of office. She is demanding savings of 900 million euros, while at the same time she wants to strengthen economic cooperation. Alabali Radovan plans to finance projects such as the construction of subways in India to promote both climate action and economic benefits. There are also important dates coming up in the next few weeks, including a development summit in Seville and a G20 meeting in South Africa. Her goals, particularly the focus on children and young people in development policy, show that she cares about having a good handle on the important questions of the future.

A personal commitment

Alabali Radovan is not only a minister, but also a committed mother. She lives with her husband, European boxing champion Denis Radovan, and their two-year-old daughter in Schwerin. Her parents fled Iraq to Germany in the 1980s, which gives her a special perspective on the issues of her time in office. She likes to show a picture of Schwerin in her office to demonstrate to her guests her connection to her homeland. While Alabali Radovan fits seamlessly into German development policy, her origins remain a strong source of motivation for her commitment.