The Vital Role of the World Health Organization: Advancing the Global Health Agenda “Part Two”

Main Work Areas under Organizational Result 1 for the Four-Year Period 2025–2028 are as follows:

• Purposeful convening and engagement with member states and key stakeholders to support health governance and advance health priorities.

• The convening role, agenda-setting, and health governance of the World Health Organization (WHO) are reflected in its legal mandate to act as the “leading and coordinating authority on international health matters.”

This includes WHO’s role in bringing countries together multilaterally to negotiate conventions, regulations, resolutions, and technical strategies, and supporting their implementation at the country level.

It also encompasses WHO’s role in fostering greater coherence and coordination in health matters across the United Nations and the global health ecosystem.

Given the interlinkages between health-related Sustainable Development Goals and international health targets, strong coordination within and among countries will be critical in this four-year period to accelerate progress.

Under GPW 14, WHO will expand its engagement with regional political forums and bodies to advance health action, including addressing the specific challenges faced by Small Island Developing States.

Through its role as the Secretariat of the International Health Regulations (2005), WHO will continue to inform all countries of public health emergencies and guide the global response to ensure timely and coordinated cross-border action.

WHO will support the implementation of initiatives to enhance the alignment of national and international resources with government health priorities. The Secretariat will facilitate the strengthening of governance processes, including by coordinating and aligning these processes across WHO, enabling member states to more effectively set, monitor, and steer global and regional health agendas.

Accelerating and Aligning Partnerships for Action and Resources:
WHO will enhance and deepen partnerships it hosts, convenes, or participates in—both inside and outside the health sector—to strengthen multilateral collaboration, better align with national priorities, and enhance shared support for countries.

WHO will leverage global and regional partnerships to support its health leadership role within UN country teams, as well as its engagement with development, technical, and humanitarian partners, including civil society, at the country level.

Through the WHO Youth Council and Civil Society Commission, WHO will strengthen its engagement with civil society organizations, as well as parliamentarians, the private sector, and vulnerable populations.

WHO will establish stronger partnership mechanisms to ensure its activities contribute to gender equality, health equity, and the right to health, particularly addressing the needs of those furthest from access, including through the full implementation of the UN system-wide action plan for gender equality and women’s empowerment, and the UN Disability Inclusion Strategy. WHO will work with multilateral and bilateral development partners, UN entities, and national partners to increase and promote coordination and alignment of resources, including through innovative financing solutions, to support national health priorities.

WHO will also collaborate with member states, partners, and donors to enhance the quality of its resource mobilization for greater impact, particularly through the WHO Investment Round.

WHO will continue to strengthen the Global Health Cluster it leads, which plays a central role in coordinating international health responses during humanitarian crises.

WHO will hold strategic dialogues with member states and development partners, strengthen engagement with multilateral development banks, including through the Health Impact Investment Platform, and facilitate country-level engagement to support this agenda.