Purpose
- CDC's Global Influenza Program improves global capacity to prevent and mitigate seasonal and pandemic influenza (flu).
- CDC builds and maintains strong global surveillance systems to detect and respond to flu threats to support global health security.
- The Global Influenza Program also helps improve availability of effective vaccines for seasonal and pandemic flu in the United States and in countries across the globe.
![People in a huddle around a bird in a live bird market](/flu-global/media/images/Live-Bird-Market.jpg)
Overview of CDC's Global Influenza Program
The CDC Influenza Division Global Program works with a wide range of global partners to build capacity to respond to flu threats.
Core activities include:
- working with partners to establish, expand, and maintain flu surveillance and laboratory capacity,
- helping develop global and local pandemic plans and flu prevention policies,
- supporting targeted research projects to address critical needs, and
- building the evidence base for flu vaccine program expansion.
CDC also serves as a WHO Collaborating Center to monitor seasonal flu, detect novel flu, and identify candidate vaccine viruses for use in making seasonal and pre-pandemic flu vaccines. Visit CDC's role as a Collaborating Center and GISRS: Backbone of global surveillance to learn more.
Program priorities
Improving global capacity to prevent and mitigate seasonal and pandemic flu by:
- optimizing surveillance and response activities
- generating evidence for flu vaccines and antiviral use
- strengthening equitable seasonal flu vaccine policies and programs
- enhancing novel, pandemic, and seasonal preparedness.
![Seasonal influenza surveillance defends against global emerging threats and supports pandemic preparedness](/flu-global/media/images/2024/07/global-influenza-program.png)
Global flu updates
For the latest summaries of global flu surveillance, visit Influenza Surveillance and Monitoring. A summary of flu activity in the United States is available in the weekly FluView report.
Travel Information and Resources for Travelers is available.