In news– India’s health secretary, Rajesh Bhushan has been appointed as the chairperson of a key committee at the 75th World Health Assembly (WHA) held in Geneva, Switzerland, that primarily deals with financial and management matters of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Key updates-
- The assembly functions through two types of committees — committee A and committee B.
- Committee A is meant to discuss technical and health matters and the other committee debates financial and administrative issues.
- Bhushan, has been appointed the chairperson of Committee B, which discussed on topics including health conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory; budget for WHO for the year 2022-2023; prevention of sexual exploitation; WHO reforms; global strategy and plan of action on public health; innovation and intellectual property; audit report of WHO; global strategy and plan of action on public health, innovation, and intellectual property; and intergovernmental organisation issues.
About World Health Assembly (WHA)-
- The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the world’s highest health policy setting body and is composed of health ministers from member states.
- It was formed in 1948, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
- It meets in the assembly hall of the Palace of Nations, in Geneva every year in May.
- The main tasks of the WHA are to decide major policy questions, as well as to approve the WHO work programme and budget and elect its Director-General (every fifth year) and annually to elect ten members to renew part of its executive board.
- Its main functions are to determine the policies of the Organisation, supervise financial policies, and review and approve the proposed programme budget.
- The WHA has, currently, 194 member states (all UN members without Liechtenstein, plus the Cook Islands and Niue) and includes two associate members, Puerto Rico and Tokelau.
Source: The Hindu
