WHO - World Health Organisation
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The World Health Organization, the United Nations specialized agency for health, was established on 7 April 1948. WHO’s objective, as set out in its Constitution, is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined in WHO’s Constitution as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
WHO is governed by 191 Member States through the World Health Assembly. The Health Assembly is composed of representatives from WHO’s Member States. The main tasks of the World Health Assembly are to approve the WHO programme and the budget for the following biennium and to decide major policy questions.
The Secretariat is headed by the Director-General, who is nominated by the Executive Board and elected by Member States for a period of five years. Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland took office as Director-General of the World Health Organization on 21 July 1998.
WHO’s Secretariat is staffed by health professionals, other experts and support staff working at headquarters in Geneva, in the six regional offices and in countries. WHO’s regional offices are:
Regional Office for Africa - located in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo
Regional Office for Europe - located in Copenhagen, Denmark
Regional Office for South-East Asia - located in New Delhi, India
Regional Office for the Americas/Pan-American Health Organization -located in Washington D.C., USA
Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean - located in Cairo, Egypt
Regional Office for the Western Pacific - located in Manila, Philippines
On taking up her position, Dr. Brundtland refocused the work of WHO and developed a new corporate strategy, setting out the following four strategic directions for WHO’s contribution to efforts to advance health at global and country level:
- Reducing excess mortality, morbidity and disability, especially in poor and marginalized populations
- Promoting healthy lifestyles and reducing risk factors to human health that arise from environmental, economic, social and behavioural causes
- Developing health systems that equitably improve health outcomes, respond to people’s legitimate demands, and are financially fair
- Framing an enabling policy and creating an institutional environment for the health sector, and promoting an effective health dimension to social, economic, environmental and development policy
In carrying out its activities, WHO’s secretariat focuses its work on the following six core functions:
- Articulating consistent, ethical and evidence-based policy and advocacy positions
- Managing information by assessing trends and comparing performance; setting the agenda for, and stimulating research and development
- Catalysing change through technical and policy support, in ways that stimulate cooperation and action and help to build sustainable national and inter-country capacity.
- Negotiating and sustaining national and global partnerships Setting, validating, monitoring and pursuing the proper implementation of norms and standards
- Stimulating the development and testing of new technologies, tools and guidelines for disease control, risk reduction, health care management, and service delivery
WHO Headquarters
Avenue Appia 20
1211 Geneva 27
Switzerland
Tel: (+ 41 22) 791 21 11
Fax: (+ 41 22) 791 31 11
Telex: 415 416
Telegraph: UNISANTE GENEVA
Please note that due to the high volume of queries received, a personal response may not be possible.
General Information
If you would like to request general information about WHO or current WHO events, please email info@who.int
Health Issues
- Healthy living for a healthy business »
Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland
World Health Day 2002, is a call to action to individuals, families, communities governments and policy-makers, to move for health. By choosing physical activity as the theme for World Health Day, the World Health Organization is promoting healthy, active and smoke-free lifestyles. Our aim is to prevent the disease and disability caused by unhealthy and sedentary living.
