Last week, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged global leaders to try to persuade Washington to reconsider US President Trump's decision to withdraw the country from the World Health Organization. The withdrawal has significant implications, as the US is WHO's largest donor, contributing an estimated $988 million for 2024-25, about 14% of WHO's $6.9 billion budget. This funding accounts for 40% of WHO's large-scale emergency operations and 80% of the "readiness functions" in WHO's Europe office, with crucial reliance seen in WHO's programs in the Middle East, Ukraine, and Sudan. Additionally, US funding supports 95% of WHO's tuberculosis efforts in Europe and 60% in Africa, the Western Pacific, and WHO's headquarters in Geneva.
A closed-door budget meeting last Wednesday revealed global concerns over the US' exit, with Bjorn Kummel from Germany warning: "The roof is on fire, and we need to stop the fire as soon as possible." WHO finance director George Kyriacou cautioned of a hand-to-mouth financial situation by early 2026 without US contributions. The organization's spending is under scrutiny, as efforts to retrieve funds from the US for past expenses remain mostly unfulfilled, placing WHO into a deficit.
Trump's executive order cited issues with WHO's COVID-19 response, lack of reform, and burdensome payments as reasons for the withdrawal. However, Tedros refuted these claims, highlighting WHO's alerts on COVID-19 in January 2020 and subsequent reforms.
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Amidst ongoing global health crises like the Marburg virus in Tanzania and Ebola in Uganda, Tedros emphasized the importance of continued US involvement, stating: "Bringing the US back will be very important." Experts like Matthew Kavanagh from Georgetown University argue that a mere 1% of the US health budget is invested in WHO, yet yields vital benefits, including global epidemic intelligence. WHO emergencies chief Dr. Michael Ryan reflected on the withdrawal as a major loss, urging member states to fill the financial gap. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
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