Geneva, April 22, 2025 — The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced plans for sweeping job cuts and structural changes following a major funding shortfall caused by the withdrawal of financial support from the United States.
Speaking to member states on Tuesday, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus revealed that the agency faces a salary gap of between $560 million and $650 million for the 2026–2027 biennium. This financial crisis, he said, stems largely from the U.S. decision not to pay its assessed contributions for 2024 and 2025.
“The sudden drop in income has left us with a large salary gap and no choice but to reduce the scale of our work and workforce,” Tedros said, according to a transcript of his remarks.
The U.S., previously the WHO’s largest contributor, provided $1.3 billion for the agency’s 2022–2023 budget—primarily through voluntary contributions earmarked for specific projects. However, the U.S. has withheld payments for 2024 and is not expected to contribute in 2025, exacerbating WHO’s budget constraints.
In response, WHO is undertaking a major restructuring. Tedros announced a significant downsizing of senior leadership and departments at the organization’s Geneva headquarters. The number of senior leaders will be reduced from 12 to 7, and departments will be cut by more than half—from 76 to 34.
“We will be saying goodbye to a significant number of colleagues,” Tedros acknowledged. “These are very painful decisions for all of us.”
While no specific figure was given on the total number of job losses, the Director-General stressed that the impact would be felt most at headquarters. Regional and country offices will also see cuts, particularly those located in high-income countries, which may face closure.
Despite the severity of the situation, Tedros noted that reforms adopted in 2022 to increase fixed membership fees have somewhat cushioned the blow. Member states are expected to contribute $1.07 billion in assessed dues for 2026–2027—even without U.S. participation—up from a projected $746 million.
Still, the WHO chief emphasized that the organization must streamline operations and refocus on its core functions. “Many countries need our support now more than ever,” he said.
Tedros also pointed to the broader context, blaming the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the suspension of global health aid as having “very severe” consequences—particularly in developing countries.
Going forward, the WHO will focus more on supporting countries to “transition away from aid dependency to greater self-reliance,” he concluded.
