US Opposes Plans to Strengthen World Health Organization Independence

The United States, the World Health Organization’s top donor, is resisting proposals to make the agency more independent, four officials involved in the talks said, raising questions about Washington’s long-term support for the organization. UN agency.

The proposal, made by the WHO’s working group on sustainable financing, would increase each member state’s permanent annual contribution, according to a WHO document posted online dated Jan. 4.

The plan is part of a broader reform process prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has highlighted the limitations of the WHO’s power to intervene early in a crisis.

But the US government opposes the reform because it is concerned about the WHO’s ability to deal with future threats, including from China, Washington officials told Reuters.

Instead, he is pushing for the creation of a separate fund, controlled directly by donors, that would finance the prevention and control of health emergencies.

Four European officials involved in the talks, who declined to be identified because they were not authorized to speak to the press, confirmed Washington’s opposition. The US government did not immediately comment.

The published proposal calls for mandatory contributions from member states to gradually increase from 2024 to represent half of the agency’s $2 billion core budget by 2028, up from less than 20% today, according to the document.

The WHO core budget aims to fight pandemics and strengthen health systems around the world. It also raises about an additional $1 billion a year to address specific global challenges, such as tropical diseases and influenza.

Supporters say the current reliance on voluntary funding from member states and charities like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation forces the WHO to focus on priorities set by funders and makes it less able to criticize members. when things go wrong.

An independent panel on pandemics that was appointed to advise on WHO reform had called for a much larger increase in mandatory fees, to 75% of the core budget, calling the current system “a huge risk to integrity and independence.” ” of the WHO.

The WHO responded to a query saying that “only flexible and predictable funding can enable the WHO to fully implement the priorities of member states”.

Major European Union donors, including Germany, back the plan, along with most African, Asian, South American and Arab countries, three of the European officials said.

The proposal will be discussed at the WHO executive board meeting next week, but the divisions mean no deal is expected, three of the officials said.

The WHO confirmed there was currently no consensus among member states and said talks are likely to continue until the annual meeting in May of the World Health Assembly, the agency’s main decision-making body.

European donors, in particular, are in favor of empowering, rather than weakening, multilateral organisations, including the WHO.