Our goal is clear: a modern WHO, working seamlessly to make a measurable difference in people’s health at country level.
WHO’s Transformation Agenda, launched in July 2017, is the most ambitious and comprehensive organizational change agenda in the Organization’s history. From the outset, underpinned by the Thirteenth General Programme of Work (GPW 13), the transformation effort aimed to align all three levels of the organization to deliver on the ambitious strategic goals of improving the health and well-being of all people everywhere.
Since the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 the world has changed – and will continue to change – in fundamental ways that have profound implications for human health and well-being in every country and community, and particularly for the poorest and most vulnerable. WHO must continue to adapt and evolve to meet these changes and to better deliver measurable impact at the country level.
With the central role of WHO in the COVID-19 pandemic, systems put in place as part of the Transformation Agenda were tested under great pressure, and a new level of understanding was achieved globally, from political leaders and the public, about the centrality of health and well-being to social and economic development.
The Fourteenth General Programme of Work (GPW 14), covering the period 2025-2028, takes into account lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and evaluation of the GPW 13. It will carry forward the three strategic shifts of stepping up WHO’s health leadership, delivering global public goods for health and differentiated country support to drive public health impact in every country.
Science is about seeking, generating, translating and sharing knowledge, the same tenets on which the World Health Organization was built. So, it is only fitting that WHO, like science, evolves to keep pace with the complex and shifting contexts of society.
A key shift of WHO’s Thirteenth General Programme of Work and the Transformation Agenda has been a much stronger focus on accountability and transparency in reporting the Organization’s performance and contributions to the strategic goals.
WHO has become the fifth largest procurer in the UN system. As part of WHO's Transformation Agenda, the different existing elements are being pulled together and new competencies and processes are being developed to build a more holistic and professional WHO supply chain.
Strengthening WHO’s approach to resource mobilization has been an iterative process, catalysed by the Organization’s transformation and defined by interaction between Member State-led and Secretariat-led processes.
In the face of the shifting global health landscape, and during a time of ambitious transformation, WHO has gone from the sidelines of international political events to being a key player, shaping the global conversation on public health.
The pandemic has been an important test for our Transformation – it has shown that we are changing and that many of the changes introduced are...
Director-General’s detailed update on the status of Transformation at the end of the design phase. The report provides an overview of progress, examples...
Key document of WHO’s Global Policy Group which lays out the vision, major areas of work, and deliverables for the Transformation, setting the scope...
EB149/5 Add.1 - May 2021
Assessment of the progress of WHO transformation at all levels of the Organization from July 2017 to date and the status of implementation of the WHO Transformation Plan & Architecture.
EB 148/32 - December 2020
Provides an update on how WHO is transforming across the three levels to deliver enhanced impact in countries.
A72/48 - May 2019
Describes the overall Transformation approach and its major areas of work and gives an update on progress.
A72/INF./4 - May 2019
Complements the report A72/48 and provides an overview of the work and vision to establish a consistent, predictable, minimum WHO country presence.
