In a show of support for a sustainably financed World Health Organization, WHO Member States today approved a 20% increase in assessed contributions (membership dues) as they endorsed the Organization\u2019s 2026\u201327 budget of US$\u00a04.2\u00a0billion.<\/p>\n
This is the second such 20% increase in assessed contributions to WHO, the previous being agreed as part of the 2024\u201325 budget. It comes as governments are facing financial constraints and economic headwinds and demonstrates Member States\u2019 fundamental support for global health solidarity and the critical role of WHO.<\/p>\n
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director-General, and other senior leaders thanked Member States for their support and partnership, noting their profound vote of confidence in WHO\u2019s mission and their commitment to health security and resilience worldwide.<\/p>\n
Insufficient levels of predictable funding of WHO has hindered its ability to carry out long term projects and support its global operations to promote health for all. This, in addition to over reliance on funding from a small set of traditional donors, was identified as a major organizational challenge in WHO\u2019s Transformation initiative that launched in 2017.<\/p>\n
In 2022, WHO Member States agreed an\u00a0historic<\/a>\u00a0increase in their assessed contributions by gradually increasing their membership dues to represent 50% of WHO\u2019s core budget by the 2030\u20132031 cycle, at the latest. In the 2020\u20132021 biennium, assessed contributions represented only 16% of the approved programme budget.<\/p>\n While this work began years ago, due to recent changes in the global financial landscape, sustainable financing is more important than ever before. WHO\u2019s originally approved 2026\u201327 programme budget was downsized 22% (from US$\u00a05.3\u00a0billion to US$\u00a04.2\u00a0billion) due to financial constraints.<\/p>\n Today\u2019s approval of WHO\u2019s base programme\u00a0budget\u00a0of US$\u00a04.2 billion\u00a0for 2026\u20132027 is the first to be fully developed based on the Organization\u2019s Fourteenth General Programme\u00a0of Work, 2025\u20132028 (GPW 14),\u00a0its global health strategy for the next four years.<\/p>\n Note to editor<\/strong><\/p>\n At its meeting in January 2021, WHO\u2019s Executive Board established the\u00a0Sustainable Financing Working Group<\/a>\u00a0to begin work on a path towards resolving the widening gap between the world\u2019s expectations of WHO and the financial resources available to us to meet them.<\/p>\n In addition to increasing Member State assessed contributions to WHO, several other resource mobilization initiatives are being undertaken to support WHO\u2019s activities. These include the establishment of the WHO Foundation, diversification of WHO\u2019s donor base, and staging of its first Investment Round, including today\u2019s\u00a0high-level pledging event<\/a>.<\/p>\n Ensuring WHO has sustainable levels of financing is critical for it to continue responding to health emergencies, increasing health-care access, and ensuring people are living healthy lives.<\/p>\n The Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly marks a key moment in the transformation of WHO to become a more efficient and effective organization, made possible by contributions from partners across the globe.<\/p>\n