The World Health Organization (WHO) has a large variety of tasks to fulfil, including fostering health security, strengthening health systems, or responding to health emergencies. For all these responsibilities, WHO faces the challenge of being cash-poor and having unpredictable funding. Only 14% of its funding (mostly fee from member countries) are fully flexible, whereas the rest are less-flexible, as they are voluntary donations purposed for specific programs.
WHO requires sustainable funding to cover its core budget. Considering this need, the World Health Assembly proposed that future donors commit to financing WHO’s core program budget for 2024-2028. This will hopefully allow the WHO to provide better and more sustainable support to countries in need as a leader in global health.
by Taybah Alam