WHO Plans Budget Cut Post-US Exit, Stands by Its Work

A document released on Sunday showed that member states of the World Health Organization will consider cutting $400 million from their budget in response to President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States as its largest government funder.

Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus, WHO director-general, opened the annual meeting of the executive board. He defended the work of the agency and its recent reforms. He also called on the U.S. government to reconsider its exit and engage in dialogue with the WHO regarding further changes.

He said, “We welcome suggestions from all member states and the United States on how we can better serve you and people around the world.”

The budget cut will be discussed during the Geneva meeting on Feb. 3-11, when member state representatives discuss the funding and work of the agency for the period 2026-2027.

According to a document published on Monday, the executive board has proposed cutting the base program section of the budget by $4.9 billion from the original $5.3 billion. This is part of a larger $7.5 billion budget that was initially proposed for 2026-2027, which included money for polio elimination and dealing with emergencies.

The document states: “With the departure from the largest financial contributor, budget cannot be business as usual. The U.S. government is the largest donor to WHO, providing around 18%. After the U.S. decision, WHO has taken separate steps to cut costs.”

The document also added that some board members wanted to send the message that the WHO will maintain its strategic direction despite the challenges.

The base budget of $4.9 billion roughly corresponds to the previous period’s program budget, 2024-2025.

Trump announced his decision to leave the WHO two weeks ago, on his first official day. Under U.S. laws, the process will take a year.