Today in London, leaders from around the world have gathered for a pledging conference for GAVI, the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations. Titled “Saving Children’s Lives” the conference is the end result of years of work, and will bring together donors to make firm commitments to fund immunizations in the world’s poorest countries. GAVI’s cost-effective model used vaccines and immunizations to prevent more than five million deaths in its first decade. Today’s conference launches a new mission to save four million additional lives by 2015. British Prime Minister David Cameron will be in attendance to pledge an increase in UK contributions to GAVI. Prime Minister Cameron argued this weekend that he sees a “moral” duty to help save children from “entirely preventable” deaths, even during times of fiscal austerity at home. The conference will be webcast live, or you can follow along on Facebook or Twitter.

Must Reads

Who’s In the News

David Cameron defends international aid rise with vaccine pledge (Toby Helm and Tracy McVeigh—Guardian)

The prime minister accepts that the decision to raise overseas aid spending at a time of domestic austerity is highly controversial. But taking on “aid skeptics” in his own party, including the defense secretary, Liam Fox, Cameron makes clear that he will not allow the deficit to be used as an excuse to duck out of obligations to the most needy across the world.

Smart Power

How an Informed Public Would Do It (Fred Barbash—CQ Staff)

Researchers attempted to simulate the budget process by providing accurate data to 2,043 Americans and then conducting a detailed survey about what steps they would take to reduce the deficit for fiscal 2015. On average, those surveyed found ways to reduce the projected deficit by $437 billion, about a third of which would come from discretionary spending cuts and two-thirds from increases in income and excise taxes.

What They Don’t Know (Fred Barbash—CQ)

In a recent CNN-Opinion Research survey, 30 percent of the respondents guessed that a fifth or more of the budget goes for foreign humanitarian and development aid. The real figure is closer to six-tenths of 1 percent.

Politics/Foreign Policy

Clinton’s Africa Tour Underscores The Power Of Women (Michele Kelemen, NPR)

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is touring U.S. aid projects in Tanzania Sunday, part of her big push to have women and girls at the center of development efforts in Africa. Food security is another key issue, as rising food prices spark fears of instability.

NATO at the crossroads after Gates speech (Jamey Keaten)

Created as a bulwark against Soviet expansion, NATO is facing an identity crisis as its members grapple with just how much its long and often-unpopular mission in Afghanistan and its new air campaign in Libya size up as national interests – or not – when many countries’ budgets are under strain.

Syria regime condemned by William Hague and Hillary Clinton

The US is not sponsoring the UN resolution but has made clear it supports the text and condemns the violence against the demonstrators. The White House said on Saturday that the regime was creating a “humanitarian crisis” and called on it to halt its offensive.

Clinton: Death of Embassy Bombing Suspect Big Blow to al-Qaida (Scott Stearns—VoaNews)

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the death of a man suspected of organizing the 1998 bombings of American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania is a significant blow to al-Qaida.