WHO chief says turmoil following US exit creates chance for reset
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Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says 2025 was “one of the most difficult years” for the WHO.
PHOTO: AFP
GENEVA – The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Feb 2 that the dramatic cuts of 2025 as the United States headed for the exit
Washington, traditionally the UN health agency’s biggest donor, has slashed foreign aid spending under President Donald Trump, who on his first day back in office in January 2025 handed the WHO his country’s one-year notice of withdrawal.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told the agency’s annual executive board meeting that 2025 was “undeniably one of the most difficult years in our organisation’s history”, with many donors tightening their belts.
“Significant cuts to our funding left us with no choice but to reduce the size of our workforce,” he said.
More than a thousand staff have departed, but Dr Tedros said such a shock was something the WHO had seen coming, having tried to pivot away from over-reliance on major donors.
And its reorientation was all but finalised, he said.
“We have now largely completed the prioritisation and realignment. We have reached a position of stability, and we are moving forward,” Dr Tedros insisted.
“Although we have faced a significant crisis in the past year, we have also viewed it as an opportunity,” he added. “It’s an opportunity for a leaner WHO to become more focused on its core mission.”
He urged member states to keep gradually increasing their membership fees, to reduce the WHO’s reliance on voluntary contributions.
The aim is for membership fees to eventually cover half of the agency’s budget, to secure its “long-term stability, sustainability and independence”.
“I don’t mean independence from member states. Of course, WHO belongs to you and always will,” he stressed.
“I mean non-dependence on a handful of donors. I mean non-dependence on inflexible, unpredictable funding. I mean a WHO that’s no longer a contractor to the biggest donors,” said Dr Tedros. “I mean an impartial, science-based organisation that’s free to say what the evidence says, without fear or favour.”
The executive board meeting, which opened on Feb 2 and runs until Feb 6, will discuss the withdrawal notifications of the US and Argentina.
Unlike any other member state, the US reserved the right to withdraw when it joined the organisation in 1948, on condition of one year’s notice, and meeting its financial obligations in full for that fiscal year.
While the notice is now up, Washington has not paid its 2024 or 2025 dues
