成立時間/1948年
成員數量/194個成員國
總幹事(國籍)/譚德塞 Tedros(衣索比亞)
任期/ 2017.07.01 至2021.12.31
台灣身分/未入會,正爭取成為觀察員
聯合國專門機構之一,為世界最大的政府間公共衛生組織,總部設於瑞士日內瓦。宗旨是「使世界各地的人們盡可能獲得高水準的健康。」工作內容為改善公共衛生、提供疾病醫療教學和訓練、推動生物製品的國際標準。另設有世界衛生大會(World Health Assembly,WHA),每年在瑞士日內瓦召開,審議WHO總幹事的工作報告、預算、接納新會員等議題。
台灣曾於2009年到2016年間以「中華台北」名義的觀察員身分受邀參加WHA,但2017年後再也沒收到邀請函。2020年WHO宣布新型冠狀病毒為Pandemic(大流行病),台灣防疫表現優於他國,多個友邦紛紛在WHA上提議邀請台灣成為觀察員。連沒有邦交的美國、加拿大、日本、英國、澳洲等國也力挺台灣。
Year of Establishment: 1948
Taiwan is fighting to receive WHA observer status.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. Its headquarters is in Geneva, Switzerland. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as “the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health.” The WHO works to improve public health, provide medical education and training, and promote international standards for biological products. The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the agency’s governing body. The members of the WHA generally meet every year in May in Geneva, Switzerland. Its main functions are to determine the policies of the Organization, supervise financial policies, and review and approve the proposed program budget.
The government of Taiwan was allowed to participate under the designation “Chinese Taipei” as an observer from 2009 to 2016 but has not been invited again since. The WHO declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic in 2020, and Taiwan’s effective response to the pandemic has bolstered its case for WHO membership. Several countries have supported Taiwan’s participation in the WHA as an observer. The United States, Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom, and Australia have voiced support for Taiwan.