Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic
The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), created by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 1991, serves as the global humanitarian coordination forum of the UN s system. The IASC brings 18 agencies together, including the World Health Organization (WHO), for humanitarian preparedness and res...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-03-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Public Health |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.837504/full |
| _version_ | 1819320356962304000 |
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| author | Micaela Pereira Bajard Nicola Stephens Johan Eidman Kathleen Taylor Warren Paul Molinaro Constance McDonough-Thayer Rafael Rovaletti Shambhu P. Acharya Peter J. Graaff Gina Samaan |
| author_facet | Micaela Pereira Bajard Nicola Stephens Johan Eidman Kathleen Taylor Warren Paul Molinaro Constance McDonough-Thayer Rafael Rovaletti Shambhu P. Acharya Peter J. Graaff Gina Samaan |
| author_sort | Micaela Pereira Bajard |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), created by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 1991, serves as the global humanitarian coordination forum of the UN s system. The IASC brings 18 agencies together, including the World Health Organization (WHO), for humanitarian preparedness and response policies and action. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the IASC recognized the importance of providing intensified support to countries with conflict, humanitarian, or complex emergencies due to their weak health systems and fragile contexts. A Global Humanitarian Response Plan (GHRP) was rapidly developed in March 2020, which reflected the international support needed for 63 target countries deemed to have humanitarian vulnerability. This paper assessed whether WHO provided intensified technical, financial, and commodity inputs to GHRP countries (n = 63) compared to non-GHRP countries (n = 131) in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis showed that WHO supported all 194 countries regardless of humanitarian vulnerability. Health commodities were supplied to most countries globally (86%), and WHO implemented most (67%) of the $1.268 billion spent in 2020 at country level. However, proportionally more GHRP countries received health commodities and nearly four times as much was spent in GHRP countries per capita compared to non-GHRP countries ($232 vs. $60 per 1,000 capita). In countries with WHO country offices (n = 149), proportionally more GHRP countries received WHO support for developing national response plans and monitoring frameworks, training of technical staff, facilitating logistics, publication of situation updates, and participation in research activities prior to the characterization of the pandemic or first in-country COVID-19 case. This affirms WHO's capacity to scale country support according to its humanitarian mandate. Further work is needed to assess the impact of WHO's inputs on health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic, which will strengthen WHO's scaled support to countries during future health emergencies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-24T11:18:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-085b0102307c4488bdc6380ce7bfcb1e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-2565 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-24T11:18:17Z |
| publishDate | 2022-03-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-085b0102307c4488bdc6380ce7bfcb1e2022-12-21T16:58:19ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652022-03-011010.3389/fpubh.2022.837504837504Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 PandemicMicaela Pereira Bajard0Nicola Stephens1Johan Eidman2Kathleen Taylor Warren3Paul Molinaro4Constance McDonough-Thayer5Rafael Rovaletti6Shambhu P. Acharya7Peter J. Graaff8Gina Samaan9Country Strategy and Support, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandWorld Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandCOVID-19 Country Technical Support, Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandCOVID-19 Country Technical Support, Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandOperational Support and Logistics, Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandOperational Support and Logistics, Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandBudget Coordination and Grant Management, Planning, Resource Coordination and Performance Monitoring, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandCountry Strategy and Support, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandHealth Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandCOVID-19 Country Technical Support, Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, SwitzerlandThe Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), created by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 1991, serves as the global humanitarian coordination forum of the UN s system. The IASC brings 18 agencies together, including the World Health Organization (WHO), for humanitarian preparedness and response policies and action. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the IASC recognized the importance of providing intensified support to countries with conflict, humanitarian, or complex emergencies due to their weak health systems and fragile contexts. A Global Humanitarian Response Plan (GHRP) was rapidly developed in March 2020, which reflected the international support needed for 63 target countries deemed to have humanitarian vulnerability. This paper assessed whether WHO provided intensified technical, financial, and commodity inputs to GHRP countries (n = 63) compared to non-GHRP countries (n = 131) in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis showed that WHO supported all 194 countries regardless of humanitarian vulnerability. Health commodities were supplied to most countries globally (86%), and WHO implemented most (67%) of the $1.268 billion spent in 2020 at country level. However, proportionally more GHRP countries received health commodities and nearly four times as much was spent in GHRP countries per capita compared to non-GHRP countries ($232 vs. $60 per 1,000 capita). In countries with WHO country offices (n = 149), proportionally more GHRP countries received WHO support for developing national response plans and monitoring frameworks, training of technical staff, facilitating logistics, publication of situation updates, and participation in research activities prior to the characterization of the pandemic or first in-country COVID-19 case. This affirms WHO's capacity to scale country support according to its humanitarian mandate. Further work is needed to assess the impact of WHO's inputs on health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic, which will strengthen WHO's scaled support to countries during future health emergencies.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.837504/fullCOVID-19World Health Organizationcountry-vulnerabilityUnited Nationshumanitarianpandemic |
| spellingShingle | Micaela Pereira Bajard Nicola Stephens Johan Eidman Kathleen Taylor Warren Paul Molinaro Constance McDonough-Thayer Rafael Rovaletti Shambhu P. Acharya Peter J. Graaff Gina Samaan Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic Frontiers in Public Health COVID-19 World Health Organization country-vulnerability United Nations humanitarian pandemic |
| title | Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_full | Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_fullStr | Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_full_unstemmed | Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_short | Serving the Vulnerable: The World Health Organization's Scaled Support to Countries During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_sort | serving the vulnerable the world health organization s scaled support to countries during the first year of the covid 19 pandemic |
| topic | COVID-19 World Health Organization country-vulnerability United Nations humanitarian pandemic |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.837504/full |
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