We explain what the World Health Organization is, how it was founded and its objectives. Also, its characteristics and structure.
What is the WHO?
The World Health Organization (WHO) is an international organization belonging to the United Nations (UN)which is dedicated to the management, promotion and implementation of health and disease prevention policies throughout the world.
Together with other international humanitarian aid organizations, WHO is part of the world’s health authorities, capable of recommending practices, prohibiting or discouraging the consumption of foods, drugs, etc. In this sense, the WHO usually sets short, medium and long-term goals and encourages the countries in which it is present to achieve them, for the good of future generations.
See also: NATO
WHO Foundation
The OMS was founded on April 7, 1948.
In the years after World War II Numerous organizations for cooperation between nations were founded.
The goal of these organizations, including the WHO, was to prevent tragedies like this from happening again.
The day of its foundation International Health Day is celebrated every year.
History of the WHO
The first WHO meeting took place in GenevaSwitzerland, where it currently has its official headquarters. It inherited from the defunct League of Nations and the International Office of Public Health a series of tasks, ranging from the control of epidemics to the standardization of the use of medicinal drugs.
One of the first tasks of the WHO was the eradication of smallpox, a goal officially achieved in 1979. It also made significant progress in the fight against leprosy, cholera, polio, malaria and tuberculosis.
WHO objectives
The basic fundamental objective of the WHO is achieve the highest possible level of health guaranteed for all citizens of the world. In this sense, health is understood as a state of physical, mental and social well-being.
On the other hand, the WHO updates its short and medium-range objectives from time to time, which is currently summarized in the 5 Millennium Development Goals:
- Strengthen the different health systems in the world, and especially in the developing world.
- Ensure that health occupies a privileged place in the health policies of countries.
- Establish health strategies that respond to the diverse and changing needs of countries.
- Mobilize greater resources for the health sector in underdeveloped countries.
- Improve health data collection and measurement strategies worldwide.
WHO Functions
The WHO pursues its objectives through different basic functions, such as:
- Provide leadership on critical health issues worldwide and participate in and propose health alliances when necessary.
- Determine the most relevant lines of research currently and stimulate the production, dissemination and application of knowledge in the area.
- Establish international health standards and ensure their compliance.
- Formulate political principles that allow scientific development to be linked to its ethical and responsibility aspects.
- Closely monitor the global health situation and alert to new dangers and risks.
WHO Activities
WHO carries out various activities around the world. On the one hand, it is dedicated to health education and reproductive healthIn this sense, the prevention and eradication of HIV/AIDS constitutes one of its priorities.
On the other hand, has programs to serve communities in situations of health vulnerability, epidemic prevention and humanitarian aid.
For it It has about 7,000 employees in more than 150 offices different from the WHO at a global level. In addition, it relies on the joint efforts of the various countries that make up the organization.
Some of its prevention programs They deal with the control and reduction of eating patternsconsumption and life that lead to lethal diseases. These include cancer, diabetes, stroke, heart disease and chronic pneumonia.
WHO institutional structure
The OMS It works by coordinating the initiatives of the different member countries at the World Health Assembly. This group meets annually in May and has the power to establish the organization’s financial policies and approve the budgets of each program.
Besides, The Assembly elects its own authorities. They make up the Executive Council, made up of 34 technical members from the health field, whose mandate lasts three years.
The day-to-day bureaucratic work of the WHO is carried out by the organization’s Secretariat. It consists of: about 5,000 workers, including healthcare workers and experts. It also includes support staff in all WHO offices around the world.
WHO Regional Offices
WHO has six regional offices through which it manages its efforts in various geographic locations around the world, each with a specific area of action:
- Africa Regional Office (AFRO). Headquartered in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, it serves most of sub-Saharan Africa.
- Regional Office for Europe (EURO). Headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, and serving all European countries.
- Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO). Headquartered in Cairo, Egypt, it covers the Maghreb region, Somalia, as well as all countries in the Middle East.
- Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO). Headquartered in Manila, Philippines, serving non-SEARO and EMRO Asian countries, as well as all of Oceania and South Korea.
- South East Asia Regional Office (SEARO). Headquartered in New Delhi, India, where we cover Asian countries not served by WPRO and EMPRO, including North Korea.
- Regional Office for the Americas (AMRO). Headquartered in Washington, USA, also known as the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), it serves the entire American continent.
Why is the WHO criticized?
The WHO has been heavily criticized for its signing of certain agreements with the Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). These agreements impose limitations on revealing information and taking action to prevent disasters such as the one that occurred in Japan in 2011.
This led to the creation of an NGO called For the independence of the WHO which constantly denounces the organization’s limitations in the face of the interests of the “nuclear lobby.” These include denying appropriate medical care to victims of atomic catastrophes.
Why is the WHO important?
The WHO is a vital institution in the global coordination of efforts to improve health of the human species. Its international presence, its budgetary capacity (unparalleled among institutions in the field) and its international acceptance make it a reference in health and medical matters.
Countries that make up the WHO
The WHO has 192 member states:
- In Africa. Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Chad, Comoros, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Togo, Botswana, Burundi, Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
- In America. Canada, Cuba, USA, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, El Salvador, Grenada, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Nicaragua , Peru, Guatemala, Bolivia, Ecuador, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and Venezuela.
- In Europe. Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Slovenia, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Norway, Netherlands, Portugal, United Kingdom, Ireland, Czech Republic , San Marino, Sweden, Switzerland, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Macedonia, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Estonia, Russia, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and Ukraine.
- Middle East. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Libya, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Syria, Tunisia, Afghanistan, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen.
- Southeast Asia. Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, North Korea, Timor-Leste.
- Eastern Pacific. Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, Cambodia, China, Fiji, Philippines, Cook Islands, Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Palau, Nauru, Mongolia, Micronesia, Niue, South Korea, Laos, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Vietnam.