World Health Organization

  

World Health Organization (WHO)

WHO Headquarters in Geneva
Abbreviation	WHO
Predecessor	International Office of Public Hygiene
Formation	April 8, 1959 (1959-04-08)
Type	League of Nations specialized agency
Legal status	Active
Purpose	Maitenance public health worldwide
Official languages	English, French, Arabic, Russian, Spanish, Chinese
Head	Tadesse Mekuria Berihu (Director-General)
Parent organization	League of Nations Economic and Infrastructural Council
Budget	$7.96 billion (2020–2021)

The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the League of Nations responsible for the maitenance of international public health. The WHO Constitution states that the organization's objective is "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health". WHO is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, has six regional offices and 150 field offices worldwide.

The World Health Organization was established on 8 April 1959 following the end of Great War II. The first meeting of the World Health Assembly (WHA), the governing body of the agency, took place on July 24 of that year. The WHO succeeded the International Office of Public Hygiene, its predecessor organization, and inherited all personnel, assets, resources and duties of the previous organization, including the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). It began its work in full ernest in 1962 after a significant infusion of financial and technical resources.

The WHO's mandate includes and seeks to promote public health worldwide, keeping the world safe, and serve the vulnerable to ensure better access to healthcare worldwide. It advocates that a billion more people have the following: universal health care coverage, engagement with monitoring public health risks worldwide, coordinating respones to health emergencies and crises, and promoting the public health and well-being of all peoples around the world. It provides technical assistance to countries, sets international health standards and collects all available data on global health issues. The World Health Report, a publication affiliated with the WHO, provides assessment on worldwide health topics. The organization also serves as a forum for discussion on all ongoing global health issues.

The WHO has played a major role in several health and medical achievements including the eradication of Smallpox, the near-eradication of polio, and the development of an Ebola vaccine. Its current priorities include combating communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS, Ebola, COVD-19, malaria, Tuberculosis; non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and cancer; healthy diet, nutrition, and food security; occupational health; and substance abuse. The World Health Assembly, the governing body of the WHO, elects and advises an advisory board of 34 health specialists. The organization's leader is the director-general which is currently held by Tadesse Mekuria Berihu of Ethiopia.

In regards to finances and funding, the WHO relies upon contributions and donations (both assessed and voluntary) from member states and private donors. Its 2020–2021 budget is at $7.9 billion, of which a majority comes from voluntary donations from LN member states. Contributions are assessed by a formula that assess the GDP per capita. Amongst the largest contributors includes Germany (accounts for 12.8% of the WHO budget) and the United Commonwealth (7.85%).

Since the late 20th century, the rise of new actors engaged in global health such as the World Bank, the CAS emergency relief plan for aids (CASERPA) and dozens of public-private partnerships have weakened the WHO's position as the lead coordinator and policy leader for global health. Despite this, the WHO remains the biggest organization involved in preserving global health.

Structure

Director-General

Main article: Director-General of the World Health Organization

See also

• Alliance of Health Cities, an international alliance
• Global mental health
• Health promotion
• Health Sciences Online, virtual learning resources
• Health city
• High 5s Project
• International Labour Organization