WHO - 154th Session of the Executive Board - Item 2 . Report by the Director-General - EU Statement
World Health Organization
154th Session of the Executive Board. 22-27 January 2024
Item 2 – Report by the Director-General
EU Statement
Geneva, 22 January 2024
Mr Chair,
Excellencies,
Mr Director General, Dr Tedros,
I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the EU and its 27 Member States.
The candidate countries Türkiye, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine[1] and Georgia align themselves with this statement.
We express our gratitude to the Director General for this extensive report and his tireless work, leadership and commitment, and extend our appreciation to WHO personnel.
Dr Tedros, you have stated several times that “there cannot be health without peace, and there cannot be peace without health”. We strongly call for an end to the conflicts causing devastation and deep human suffering in the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan, Ethiopia, Myanmar, DRC and elsewhere. We recall the resolution this Board adopted last month on “Health conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem”, and hope the draft decision on the “Global Health and Peace Initiative” will also be adopted as an important measure to protect people’s health and wellbeing.
We commend WHO’s vigilant responses to the numerous health emergencies, to support health systems in crisis and protect civilians and health workers.
Climate crisis is another health emergency. The endorsement of the Climate and Health Declaration at COP28 by many countries is an important milestone. We applaud the WHO’s leadership role in raising awareness about the need to build climate-resilient and low-carbon health systems.
We call on WHO to continue its efforts to promote health in all policies and the One Health approach.
We now look into another important year. The EU welcomes the participatory and inclusive process that has been implemented to discuss the next General Programme of Work. We value the clear focus on leveraging and reinforcing WHO’s comparative strengths in regard to its leadership, coordination, operational and especially normative function which is essential for all Member States, including to counter misinformation. Fostering inclusive collaboration between international actors and counteracting fragmentation in the global health ecosystem is crucial for an effective international system, leaving no region of the world behind.
We note with appreciation that 96% of the approved revised budget for 2022-2023 is projected to be financed, and that 75% of the available funding has been used. We remain concerned by persistent imbalances in financing for different segments and priorities and welcome the planned link between the Investment Round and the GPW14 as a means to raise adequate, flexible funding in a more predictable, transparent and coordinated manner.
The EU remains committed to meaningfully strengthening the legal and normative framework for pandemic and emergencies prevention, preparedness and response via an international pandemic agreement and the ongoing revision of the International Health Regulations. As members of the global health community, we are committed to prioritizing global health for all, to the successful conclusion of these negotiations at WHA 77.
Thank you.
[1] North Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.