WHO To Shed 600 Jobs At HQ; Early Projections Show Berlin Wins From Proposed Relocation of Key Technical Functions
Newsletter Edition #295 [The Files Brief]
Hi,
We bring you a quick update on a recent announcement made last week to cut down 600 jobs at WHO in Geneva heading into 2026-2027. In this edition we also discuss, the organization’s relocation plans as presented to member states.
See below, an announcement for a workshop we are conducting later this week on the new Pandemic Treaty, presented from a reporter’s perspective: what we saw, heard and observed while covering these negotiations. Sign up here.
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Best,
Priti
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I. HOT OFF THE PRESS
WHO To Shed 600 Jobs At HQ; Early Projections Show Berlin Wins From Proposed Relocation of Key Technical Functions
Update on downsizing at WHO Head Quarters
Proposed relocation of key technical functions to Berlin, Dubai, Lyon, Jamnagar
Reorienting activities of Science Division and WHO Emergencies Programme
In an update sent last week, WHO DG Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told staff in an email, that the organization is moving to shed 600 jobs at its headquarters in Geneva, in line with a 21% reduction in its base budget for the 2026-2027 biennium to US $4.2 billion (WHO budget cycle runs every two years. The base budget represents the core mandate of WHO and the largest part of the budget.)




