Less than 24-hours after President Donald Trump announced a halt on funding due to the “mismanaging” of the coronavirus pandemic, both the World Health Organization and the United Nations have respond.
“We regret the decision of the president of the United States to order a hold in funding to the World Health Organization,” said Director-General of the World Health Organization Dr. Tedros Ahhanom Ghebreyesus in a press conference on Wednesday. “WHO works to improve the health of many of the world’s poorest, and vulnerable people.”
According to WHO, the United States donated more than $800 million from 2018 to 2019. Halting that funding could severely impact the organization’s ability to continue progressing study on health issues the world over. Issues that reach far beyond just the coronavirus.
Ghebreyesus also said the WHO is working to calculate the impact on their work that the withdrawal of their largest donor will have.
“When we’re divided, the virus exploits the cracks between us,” added Ghebreyesus.
“Since the beginning, WHO has been fighting the #COVID19 pandemic with every ounce of our soul and spirit. We will continue to do that until the end”-@DrTedros
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) April 15, 2020
The United Nations — which oversees WHO operations and created the organization in 1948 — said a review of incidents should be done, but urged patience.
“This virus is unprecedented in our lifetime and requires an unprecedented response. Obviously, in such conditions, it is possible that the same facts have had different readings by different entities,” wrote Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, in a statement published on Tuesday.
“Once we have finally turned the page on this epidemic, there must be a time to look back fully to understand how such a disease emerged and spread its devastation so quickly across the globe, and how all those involved reacted to the crisis.”
Guterres added, “now is not that time.”
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