World Health Assembly

The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the governing forum of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the principal venue through which its 193 member states collectively determine the direction of international public health. It is composed primarily of delegations appointed by member governments, generally led by health ministers or senior health officials. The Assembly meets annually, usually in May, in Geneva at the Palais des Nations, close to WHO headquarters. It may also convene special sessions when the circumstances require them. The WHA's responsibilities extend well beyond adopting general statements. It establishes WHO policy, reviews the organization's work, approves the proposed programme budget, supervises financial policy, and elects the WHO Director-General every five years. Each year it also elects ten members to renew part of the WHO Executive Board, whose members serve three-year terms. The Assembly works through plenary meetings, committees, a General Committee and other procedural bodies. Its agenda is prepared under the Assembly's rules of procedure and includes proposals from member states, the Executive Board and the WHO Secretariat. The Assembly has been central to the creation and endorsement of major international health instruments and programmes. Its decisions have supported the International Health Regulations, the 1981 International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel and the WHO Family of International Classifications, including the International Classification of Diseases. It has also endorsed campaigns and action plans concerning smallpox eradication, polio eradication, immunization, malaria, antimicrobial resistance, non-communicable diseases, maternal and child health, alcohol, tobacco, nutrition and universal health coverage. The WHA began with 55 member states at its first meeting in 1948 and expanded alongside the United Nations system and the growth of WHO membership. It currently has 193 member states, as well as associate members Puerto Rico and Tokelau. A number of intergovernmental, humanitarian and other organizations participate as observers. The Assembly's membership rules and observer arrangements have also made it a forum for geopolitical disputes. Taiwan attended as an observer under the designation Chinese Taipei from 2008 through 2016, but was not invited to subsequent assemblies after political pressure from China. Several governments, including the United States, Australia, Germany and Japan, have supported renewed participation. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated both the Assembly's importance and the limits of multilateral health governance. The 73rd WHA was held virtually in May 2020, and member states adopted a consensus decision supporting an independent evaluation of the international response to the pandemic and agreed to convene a special session on a possible pandemic instrument. The special session held in November 2021 began a process to draft and negotiate an international agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. Subsequent assemblies continued to address pandemic preparedness, health-system resilience, equitable access to medical countermeasures and the broader goal of health for all. The WHA is not a commercial brand or an operating company. It is an intergovernmental institutional identity whose authority derives from the WHO Constitution and the participation of sovereign states. Its outputs include resolutions, decisions, technical endorsements, elections and approved budgets. These instruments commonly influence national health legislation, international coordination, disease-control programmes and the priorities of public-health institutions around the world.

The World Health Assembly was established with the World Health Organization in the post-Second World War construction of a permanent international health system. Its first assembly met in 1948 with 55 member states. The institution was designed as the political and governing forum of WHO, with authority to determine organizational policy, approve the programme budget, supervise financial administration and elect senior governing officials. Over time, the WHA became the principal state-based forum for converting public-health priorities into international policy. Its resolutions and decisions have supported disease-eradication programmes, international surveillance rules, health classifications, tobacco control, pharmaceutical and health-worker policies, nutrition initiatives and broader health-system strategies. The Assembly's influence is exercised through WHO governance rather than through direct administration of national health services; governments implement or adapt its instruments according to their legal systems and international commitments. Smallpox eradication was one of the Assembly's most important long-term achievements. The WHA endorsed the global eradication programme in 1959, and in 1980 formally recognized that smallpox had been eradicated. It later endorsed the global polio-eradication effort, beginning in 1988, and repeatedly renewed international commitments to complete it. Other agendas expanded as global health challenges changed, including HIV/AIDS, emerging infections, non-communicable diseases, antimicrobial resistance, air pollution, mental health, nutrition and the social determinants of health. The Assembly's membership grew to 193 states. Its rules permit the participation of associate members and selected observers, but political questions surrounding representation have remained significant. Taiwan held observer status under the name Chinese Taipei for eight years from 2008 to 2016. Beginning with the 2017 assembly, it was not invited, amid pressure from China. Support for Taiwan's participation by several governments has made the issue a recurring feature of diplomatic discussion around the WHA. The annual meetings of the 2010s reflected an increasingly broad policy remit. The 65th Assembly in 2012 endorsed the Rio Political Declaration on the social determinants of health and recognized the importance of inclusive health-for-all approaches. The 66th Assembly in 2013 addressed emerging diseases including MERS and H7N9 influenza, as well as universal health coverage and action plans for non-communicable diseases, mental health and avoidable blindness. The 67th and 68th assemblies addressed antimicrobial resistance, essential medicines, mercury exposure, malaria, polio, surgical care, immunization and reform of WHO's emergency-response arrangements. The 69th Assembly linked the health-related Sustainable Development Goals with universal health coverage, equity and action outside the health sector. The COVID-19 crisis changed the Assembly's working methods. The 73rd session in 2020 was held virtually, and member states adopted measures concerning evaluation of the pandemic response, access to health technologies and preparedness for future emergencies. The 74th Assembly in 2021 continued in a largely virtual format under the theme of ending the pandemic and building a healthier, safer and fairer world. A special session in November 2021 launched negotiations toward a pandemic-prevention and preparedness instrument. The 75th, 76th and 77th assemblies subsequently framed their work around health and peace, WHO's seventy-fifth anniversary and the goal of health for all. The 78th Assembly in 2025 used the theme One World for Health and included attention to regional cooperation on visceral leishmaniasis elimination. Today, the WHA remains an active intergovernmental body meeting annually in Geneva, with special sessions available for exceptional matters. Its continuing role is to provide political legitimacy, financial authorization and strategic direction for WHO, while giving governments a formal setting in which to negotiate global health priorities and respond collectively to international health emergencies.

• 2021

  Special session on pandemic preparedness

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The Assembly's second special session established a process to draft and negotiate an international pandemic-prevention and preparedness instrument.

• 2020

  First virtual regular Assembly

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The 73rd WHA met virtually because of COVID-19 and agreed to convene a later special session on a pandemic instrument.

• 2010

  Global Code of Practice on health-personnel recruitment

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The Assembly adopted a global code addressing the international recruitment of health personnel.

• 2003

  WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control adopted

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The WHA adopted the first WHO treaty, establishing a multilateral framework for tobacco control.

• 1988

  Global polio-eradication initiative endorsed

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The Assembly endorsed a worldwide effort to eradicate poliomyelitis and later reaffirmed the commitment through additional resolutions.

• 1981

  International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes adopted

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The Assembly adopted the international code intended to regulate the marketing of breast-milk substitutes and protect breastfeeding.

• 1980

  Smallpox eradication declared

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The WHA declared that smallpox had been eradicated worldwide.

• 1959

  Global smallpox eradication endorsed

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The Assembly endorsed a worldwide smallpox-eradication effort that ultimately led to formal recognition of eradication in 1980.

• 1948

  First World Health Assembly

  [1]World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org

  The inaugural Assembly met with 55 member states and established the WHA as the governing forum of the newly created World Health Organization.

The highest-level multilateral forum for setting WHO policy and coordinating government action on global health.

• Global health governance · 1948

  WHA resolutions and decisions

  Formal instruments through which member states establish policy directions, endorse strategies, request action from the WHO Secretariat and address specific international health issues. They cover subjects ranging from disease control and health emergencies to nutrition, medicines, tobacco, health financing and universal health coverage.

• Organizational governance · 1948

  WHO programme budget

  The proposed programme budget is reviewed and approved by the Assembly. It provides the financial and strategic framework for WHO's work across technical programmes, emergency operations, regional activities and administrative functions.

• International policy framework · 1951

  International health frameworks

  The WHA has adopted or endorsed major frameworks including the International Health Regulations, the tobacco-control convention, the breast-milk-substitute marketing code and global codes concerning health personnel recruitment.

• Health information standard

  WHO Family of International Classifications

  The Assembly endorses WHO classification systems used internationally to describe diseases, health conditions, functioning and disability, including the International Classification of Diseases and the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health.

• 2012World Immunization Week

  Global

  The 65th Assembly endorsed the first World Immunization Week as a recurring platform to promote vaccination and address immunization gaps.

  Outcome. The campaign became part of the annual global health calendar.

  Source
• 1988Global Polio Eradication Initiative

  Global

  The Assembly backed a coordinated international campaign to eliminate poliomyelitis through vaccination, surveillance and outbreak response.

  Outcome. The eradication objective remains active and has been repeatedly reaffirmed.

  Source
• 1959Global Smallpox Eradication Programme

  Global

  The WHA endorsed the worldwide eradication effort, which coordinated surveillance, vaccination and international technical support.

  Outcome. Smallpox eradication was formally declared in 1980.

  Source

• 2021

  Launch of pandemic-instrument negotiationsStrategy

  Background

  Member states concluded that existing arrangements needed to be strengthened after the COVID-19 experience.

  Action taken

  The special session established a process to draft and negotiate an international instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

  Aftermath

  Negotiations continued through later WHO governance processes and Assembly sessions.

  Source

• 2020

  COVID-19 response and independent evaluationStrategy

  Background

  The COVID-19 pandemic required the Assembly to meet virtually and address preparedness, response coordination and access to health technologies.

  Action taken

  Member states adopted a consensus decision supporting a comprehensive evaluation of the international response and called for stronger preparedness.

  Aftermath

  The decision contributed to the subsequent process for negotiating a pandemic-prevention and preparedness instrument.

  Source

• 2016

  Health-related Sustainable Development Goals frameworkStrategy

  Background

  The 69th Assembly considered how WHO and member states should pursue the health-related Sustainable Development Goals and address inequity.

  Action taken

  Delegates prioritized universal health coverage, equity, action on social and environmental determinants, and continued work on infectious and non-communicable diseases.

  Aftermath

  These priorities shaped subsequent WHO planning and annual Assembly agendas.

  Source

• 2003

  Adoption of the tobacco-control conventionOther

  Background

  The Assembly addressed the global health burden of tobacco use and the need for coordinated regulation.

  Action taken

  It adopted the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

  Aftermath

  The convention became the principal multilateral treaty for tobacco-control policy.

  Source

• 1981

  Adoption of the breast-milk-substitute marketing codeOther

  Background

  Member states sought international standards to protect breastfeeding and limit inappropriate promotion of breast-milk substitutes.

  Action taken

  The Assembly adopted the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes.

  Aftermath

  The code became a continuing reference point for national regulation and WHO guidance on infant feeding.

  Source

1. 1World Health Assemblyen.wikipedia.org
2. 2World Health Assembly — World Health Organizationwho.int