The Director -General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanum Gebrisos, announced on Tuesday that the organization will have to “tighten the belt” after the United States, the largest contributor to its budget, decided to withdraw from it.
“We regret the United States’ announcement of its intention to withdraw (…) and we hope that it will reconsider its decision, and we will welcome the opportunity to engage in a constructive dialogue” with Washington.
“We are working to achieve two strategic goals, namely mobilizing resources and tightening the belt,” he added.
After returning to the White House last month, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to withdraw his country from the World Health Organization, which in his first term had previously criticized it because of the way it dealt with the Kofid-19.
In Trump’s first state, the United States took steps to withdraw from the World Health Organization, but it retracted it during the era of his successor, Joe Biden.
“We had to face new facts, while announcing the withdrawal of the United States from the World Health Organization.”
He added, “Despite the many challenges we faced, we have gathered and reached an agreement on 40 decisions and 7 decisions, aimed at enhancing our work and improving public health.”
Trump’s decision shed light on the organization’s need for safer and more reliable financing, after it has relied strongly in recent years on voluntary contributions.
The Executive Council of the organization recommended that membership fees be increased by 20 percent to cover at least half of its budget by 2030.