World Health Organization

WHO (World Health Organization) is an international organization that directs and coordinates authority for health within the United Nations System. It works with the United Nations, non-state actors, partners, and collaborating centers. The organization’s primary responsibilities include the provision of leadership on matters critical to health and engaging in partnerships where joint action is needed; the shaping of research agenda and stimulating the generation, translation, and dissemination of knowledge; the setting of norms and standards, and promoting and monitoring their implementation; the articulation of ethical and evidence-based policy options; the provision of technical support, catalyzing change, and building sustainable institutional capacity; and the monitoring of the health situation and assessing health trends. WHO also publishes an annual research report that carries an assessment of global health, including statistics relating to all countries with a focus on a specific subject. The main purpose of the report is to provide countries, donor agencies, international organizations, and others with the information they need to make policy and funding decisions. The report is also offered to a wider audience ranging from universities, teaching hospitals, and schools to journalists and the public. The organization’s programs and projects include Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health, Blood transfusion safety, African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control, Civil Society Initiative (CSI), Public Health and Environment, Prevention of Blindness and Visual Impairment, Polio Eradication Initiative, Tobacco Free Initiative (TFI), Human Genetics programme, Tuberculosis - Stop TB Partnership, Health Impact Assessment (HIA), United Nations Road Safety Collaboration, Global Campaign for Violence Prevention, NCDnet - Global Noncommunicable Disease Network, Global Task Force on Cholera Control, Prequalification of Medicines Programme, Initiative for Vaccine Research (IVR), and more. Employing over 7000 individuals, WHO’s workforce include medical doctors, public health specialists, scientists, and epidemiologists. WHO’s staff include people trained to manage administrative, financial, and information systems as well as experts in the fields of health statistics, economics, and emergency relief. WHO was formed in 1948 in Geneva, Switzerland and currently has 147 country offices and 6 regional offices.

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