Amid Funding Cut From US, WHO Creates Foundation To Tap New Funding Sources

After the United States suspended its funding for the World Health Organization, the organization has set up a foundation that will enable it to tap into new sources of funding, including from the general public.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus made this announcement on Wednesday.

According to Ghebreyesus, the WHO Foundation is being created as an independent grant-making entity that will support the organization’s efforts to address the most pressing global health challenges by raising new funding from “non-traditional sources”.

Recall that The United States suspended funding to the WHO this year after President Donald Trump complained about its handling of the coronavirus pandemic and accused it of being “China-centric”.

Trump also threatened this month to halt funding from the body’s top donor altogether if it does not commit to reforms within 30 days.

But Tedros said the creation of the WHO Foundation had nothing to do with “recent funding issues.”

He said this month that the body’s annual budget of around $2.3 billion was “very, very small” for a global agency, around that of a medium-sized hospital in the developed world.

He also said that the funding sources were too uncertain, being overly reliant on “flexible funding” that can fluctuate.