The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations based in Geneva (Switzerland). It was on the 7th April founded in 1948 and counts 194 Member States. She is the United Nations agency for coordinating international public health.Mission
The Constitution of the World Health Organization stated that their goal is the realization of the highest attainable level of health for all people. Their main task is to combat disease, with particular emphasis on infectious diseases, and promoting the general health of people around the world.
For their success since the founding of the Prince of Asturias Prize was awarded in the 2009 WHO International Cooperation.Formation
On 22 July 1946, the constitution was World Health Organization in New York City adopted and signed by 61 States. She stepped on 7 April 1948 after the ratification of the 26th Signatory state in force.Membership
The WTO membership is open to all States. With the exception of the Principality of Liechtenstein to the United Nations, all Member States are also members of the WHO. There are also two non-Member States, Niue and the Cook Islands. The countries that are not Member States of the United Nations, can join as associate members to the WTO. They are fully informed and have a limited participation and voting rights. To the associated members include Puerto Rico and Tokelau.
The Republic of China (Taiwan), which was excluded in 1971 from the United Nations, presented a request for accession to the WHO observer status. The World Health Organization refused from 2004 due to the one-China policy.Organs
The business of the WHO are perceived by its principal organs, the World Health Assembly, the Executive Council and the Secretariat.
The World Health Assembly (World Health Assembly, WHA) is the highest decision-making body. All WTO Members are reported each year in May in Geneva to make the financial and organizational transactions and to define future programs.
The Executive Council is composed of 34 health experts from the Member States. They are elected for three years by the World Health Assembly. In the period between the annual sessions of the WHA Executive Council is responsible for the leadership. The main tasks of the Executive Council are in the resolutions and directives of the Assembly.
The Secretariat of the WHO headquarters in Geneva and six regional offices implements the activities of the WHO. It is since 4 January 2007 conducted by the WHO Director-General Margaret Chan.
The Regional OfficesThe six administrative regions of WHO
The six WHO regional offices are located in the following cities:
Brazzaville (Africa Region)
Cairo (Eastern Mediterranean Region)
Copenhagen (Europe Region)
Manila (Western Pacific Region)
New Delhi (South East Asia)
Washington, D.C. (Americas)
Each regional office is headed by a Regional Director who is elected by the Regional Committee for the period of five years. The name of the candidate for the post of Regional Director is the Executive mediated confirming the appointment.
WHO is striving to strengthen its presence in the Member States themselves. About 200 collaborating centers and research institutions to support their activities through ongoing programs of WHO.Financing
The biennial budget of the WHO for the years 2008-2009 amounted to 3.759 billion U.S. dollars revenue and spending 3.941 billion U.S. dollars.
The assessed contributions of WHO Member States amounted to 940 million U.S. dollars. They are calculated as a key, with the amount of the contribution depends on the solvency of the country. Voluntary contributions in the amount of 2.745 billion U.S. dollars have been paid to 52% of WHO Member States, particularly the U.S., UK, Canada, Norway and the Netherlands. The rest of voluntary contributions came mainly from foundations (21%), international organizations (17%) and to 5% each of NGOs and the private sector. The remaining revenue came from the WHO or services from the repayment of outstanding contributions.
The expenditure of the WHO headquarters (in particular to fund ongoing programs) amounted to 1.412 billion U.S. dollars. Of the 6 regional offices had the one with 1.007 billion U.S. dollars, the highest spending in Africa.
WHO projects are partly funded as a public-private partnership. These include:
The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, GAVI), to which 75% (750 million U.S. dollars) is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), which was founded in 2003. It aims through partnership projects, among others, with the WHO and the food industry to prevent malnutrition, particularly in developing countries.
No longer in the program budget of the WHO, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS configured, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM), which was founded in 2002 by the G8. The WHO has described her 2005 collaboration with the GFATM in a recommendation for action. Also outside the lead UNAIDS, WHO, UNITAID or IARC own accounting.TasksApplicationSouth side of the WHO headquarters in Geneva
The Constitution of the WHO statuiert that their purpose is to help to achieve the best possible health to all peoples. To achieve this objective, Health for All in the 21st is the WHO strategy " Century ", adopted by the World Health Assembly in 1998 and adopted at the 1978" Alma-Ata Declaration "is based. There is a degree of health can be achieved which enables all people to lead a socially and economically productive life. Health is perceived as an essential part of human development.
Health is defined in WHO's Constitution as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, which is characterized not only by the absence of disease or infirmity." This definition of health has been further developed through the concept of health promotion in the Ottawa Charter, WHO 1986. It is postulated that to achieve this state satisfy both individuals and groups their needs, fulfill their desires and hopes and realize and cope with the environment and can change. In this sense, health is defined as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, understood as an essential part of everyday life - and not the objective of living.Tasks
Global coordination of national and international activities in the fight against communicable diseases such as AIDS, malaria, SARS and flu
Launch of global vaccination programs for the prevention of pandemics, and programs addressing health risk factors such as smoking or obesity
Regular collection and analysis of global health and disease data
Support for the development of efficient and cost effective as possible health systems in developing countries (eg Bamako Initiative in Africa)
Creating a model list of essential drugs
The World Health Report (World Health Report) about the worldwide health care or existing disease problems, which is published annually by the WHO
Regulatory tasks
A central role of WHO is to provide guidelines, standards and methods to develop health-related areas, to unify and enforce worldwide. The Constitution of the WHO looks for three instruments: International agreements, arrangements directly based on the WHO Constitution and non-binding recommendations.
The only under the aegis of WHO drew up on 21 May 2003 adopted by the WHA international treaty is the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (English WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, FCTC). The Framework Convention was born out of the realization that the global spread of tobacco use has serious consequences for public health. Therefore the broadest possible international cooperation in tobacco prevention and combating of illicit trade in tobacco products is necessary.
Arrangements directly based on the WHO Constitution, there are only two areas. The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD) was first enacted in 1949 as ICD 6 and has since been revised several times, the last time in 1999 (ICD 10). Also already in the early days of the WHO International Health Regulations (English International Health Regulations, IHR) were adopted. They were adopted in 1951 under the name "International Sanitary Regulations (ISR)" and have been revised three times since then, most recently in 2005. Both sets of rules can be defined for all Member States as legally binding by a majority of the WHA members. The only possibility for a Member State to evade the obligation is to be known within a certain period, he reject the scheme or make reservations (so-called opting out).
The WHA or other organs of the WHO have adopted countless non-binding recommendations, resolutions, standards or methods. Despite a lack of legal liability and Sanktionslosigkeit for violations, they are followed usually by WHO Member States. This is true at least for standards with technical or scientific nature. Other non-binding recommendations, such as the 1981 adopted International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes (English International Code of Marketing of Breast-Milk Substitutes), are politically controversial. The reaction in the individual states and the observance of the Code by the baby food industry was not at all or only partially hesitant.
In addition, WHO is transmitted through international treaties regulating tasks, for example, by the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 and the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971. These are often met by this set up by the WHO Expert Committee.Successes
The greatest success has made progress in combating infectious diseases WHO. Thanks worldwide vaccination programs can be prevented annually the death or disability of several million people.
After years of smallpox had been fought, the World Health Assembly of the WHO declared in May 1980 recommendation of an expert commission in December 1979, the disease eradicated.
The development of vaccines against malaria and schistosomiasis approaching a success and the eradication of polio (poliomyelitis) in the coming years is sought.CriticismCooperation with IAEA
On 28 May 1959 was 8 on the World Health Assembly between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the WHO adopted resolution (WHA12-40). The Treaty defines and Others, that the responsibility for research, developments and applications in the field of nuclear energy, primarily in the IAEA and the WHO have is to consult the relevant IAEA activities and these were to be settled by mutual agreement. This dependence of the IAEA, the WHO, the articles of association is to promote the peaceful worldwide use of nuclear energy, is widely criticized, as this example, the global number of victims of the Chernobyl disaster by the WHO and the IAEA together as would be estimated too low. From various quarters, including the MEP Rebecca Harms, therefore the resolution of the resolution WHA12-40 is required.
Flu
WHO was and is his conduct in fighting the pandemic in the criticism. Thus, after the occurrence of the H5N1 virus (so-called H5N1 avian influenza) in May 2005 - due to the warning of the then Impfdirektors Klaus Stöhr of a possible global flu epidemic ("up to 7 million deaths") - from governments for millions of the flu drugs Tamiflu and Relenza purchased. Although the virus spread worldwide, but it rarely came to human diseases, so that only 152 people worldwide at the "H5N1 bird flu" died, far less than a seasonal flu. 2007 Klaus Stohr of the WHO changed to the pharmaceutical company Novartis.
After the occurrence of the A/H1N1 virus (so-called swine flu) epidemic, the WHO alert level increased with the spread of the disease gradually to the highest level 6 (pandemic). The government then ordered vaccines (alone in Germany for 450 million euros) and flu remedies. Sparked criticism from here especially that the current WHO Director-Impfstoffabeiltung - Mrs. Marie-Paule Kieny - before her time at the WHO at the French pharmaceutical company Transgene SA was employed, which maintains strategic partnerships for vaccine production with the Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche. The euro Europe went to the suspicion that there was a close interaction between WHO and the pharmaceutical industry. Action Days
WHO or the WHA decided in the course of time numerous world day by resolutions already supported or initiated by other international organizations, world days. More days of action with respect to health issues can be found in the list of Remembrance and Action Days.
24th March: The World Tuberculosis Day (World Tuberculosis Day) was supported by the WHO in 1996.
7 April: World Health Day (World Health Day) was adopted by the WHO in 1948.
25th April: The World Malaria (World Malaria Day) was adopted by the WHO in 2007.
31, May: World No Tobacco Day (World No Tobacco Day) was adopted by the WHO in 1987.
14th June: World Blood Donor Day (World Blood Donor Day) was supported by the WHO in 2005.
10th September: The World Suicide Prevention Day (World Suicide Prevention Day) was supported by the WHO in 2003.
Last Sunday in September: World Heart Day (World Heart's Day) was supported by the WHO.
28th October: The World Polio Day (World Polio Day) was supported by the WHO.
14th November: World Diabetes Day (World Diabetes Day) was supported by the WHO in 1991.
1 December: World AIDS Day (World AIDS Day) was adopted by the WHO in 1988.
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