Did the WHO fail the Corona Exam?

The World Health Organization is going through the most critical stages in its history, in light of the shaking confidence in its performance due to the way it manages the crisis of the new Corona virus epidemic, which caused the "Covid-19" disease that swept the world.

Gibresus's critics say he bears part of the responsibility for the spread of the virus, as on January 23 he refused to declare a state of global emergency, causing the number of deaths and injuries to quadruple within five days. World Health did not declare a public health emergency until January 30, and it did not describe the outbreak of the pandemic until March 11.

Before this date, specifically on January 14, the organization said that preliminary investigations showed that the Chinese authorities had not found sufficient evidence to confirm that the virus was transmitted through humans.

However, many experts are blaming the organization for believing the data of the Chinese government, especially since the latter arrested a doctor who was one of the first to discover the virus, before several media outlets announced his death last February after contracting the same virus.

Francois Goodman of the French Montaigne Institute for Policy failed and wrote that the organization made two major mistakes: the first when it failed to know early that infection was transmitted between humans, and the second that Corona declared an international pandemic only after registering 118,000 cases in 114 countries, which affected the policies of countries That follows WHO's guidelines, highlighting that Global Health did not send a team to China to investigate the virus until February 13, one and a half months after its first infection was recorded.

The organization did not listen to warnings by Taiwan at the end of 2019 that the new virus infection could be transmitted between humans. The "Asia Times" newspaper reported that the Taiwan government confirmed that it was then aware of a respiratory infection in Wuhan, China, and therefore it tried to communicate with China and the global health in search of clarifications, but the only answer that Taiwan received was no more than an e-mail saying that the organization's experts will investigate the matter. . 

Hiding China,
but the biggest criticism directed at the organization and its president, is the way to deal with China, to the extent that press reports described it as "the Chinese Health Organization" and not the world!

In the statement, in which the organization declared a health emergency, there was an exaggerated tribute to China, and what the organization called "the Chinese government's commitment to transparency of the highest degree, and its efforts to investigate the outbreak of the virus."

The organization is also being accused of having contributed greatly to the rapid spread of the epidemic globally, by repeatedly calling on countries of the world not to close their borders with China. 

A few days ago, US President Donald Trump launched a violent attack on the World Health Organization alongside China, and he was not satisfied with that but rather instructed to freeze the funding provided by the United States to the organization. 

The United Nations World Health Organization was founded in 1948, and it carries out international activities related to community health. It is the only international health forum that the world's population - estimated at 7.7 billion people - can trust in health. 

The World Health Organization has 150 offices and about 7,000 employees worldwide, and is based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Funding
The organization is funded through a mixture of assessed and voluntary contributions. Contributions (membership fees) are dues payable by countries to be members of the organization, and the amount to be paid by each country is calculated according to the wealth of the country and its population.

The annual membership fee covers about 17% of the organization's budget, which was estimated at $ 4.5 billion for the period 2020-2021.

The total US contribution to financing the organization constitutes 14.67% of its annual budget, and its size amounts to about 412 million dollars annually.

The estimated annual contributions of the United States to the Organization exceed $ 118 million, and the remainder, which is approximately $ 300 million, is to be paid in the form of voluntary contributions.

The United States is the largest funder of the World Health Organization, followed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Britain, and Germany. 

As for China - the subject of criticism at the present time - its contribution to the organization amounted to $ 43 million, which is equivalent to 0.21% of the total international contributions, which places it ranked 49 globally, and $ 38 million out of the total of 43 million is included in the mandatory payments.

A cautious balance
In responding to criticism about courtesy of China, the WHO chief said at a press conference on February 12, "I know that there is a lot of pressure on the World Health Organization when we value what China is doing, but we will not stop due to pressure to tell the truth. China does not need To the request for praise ... China was not the only country that recognized our work, as we recognized the efforts of other governments, "before returning to the assertion," This is a very dangerous virus, and China has taken many good measures that have slowed it down, and this requires recognition. "

Gypressus uses a balanced and cautious approach to the harsh and persistent accusations leveled by US President Donald Trump. Instead of responding to Trump's allegations, Gipressus emphasizes that the pandemic should not be politicized. 

Trump is not alone
with the United States, many countries - including Japan and Taiwan - criticize the performance of the World Health Organization, and accuses the organization of making late and contradictory decisions.

The following is the path followed by the World Health Organization on the epidemic that emerged in December 2019 in Wuhan, the capital of China's Hubei Province:

January 14: In a tweet published by the World Health Organization on its Twitter account and given to Chinese officials, she said there is no concrete evidence that Coffid-19 has passed from one person to another. 

January 20: The organization announced that the virus may be transmitted from animal to human, yet it can be transmitted from human to human in the event of close contact, albeit in limited numbers. 

January 21: The death toll from the Coronavirus in China has risen to 6, and Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said his country had informed the World Health Organization and relevant countries about the epidemic since its inception. 

January 23: WHO Director-General Tidros Adhanom Gebresus said it is too early to announce a public health emergency regarding the rapidly spreading virus in China. 

January 24: Gabrios, after meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing, appreciated the measures taken by the Chinese government, stressing that the WHO is ready to provide China with what it needs, and that the organization is confident of the Chinese government's ability to fight the epidemic. 

January 29: Immediately after his visit to China, Gypressus confirmed an increase in the number of infections to 6,000, and 132 deaths from the virus, warning of the virus's high potential to spread. 

January 30: The World Health Organization announced that the outbreak of the Coruna virus constituted a public health emergency, while Gypressus said that the main reason for declaring the emergency was caused by what is happening in other countries and not what is happening in China, stressing that there are no reasons to restrict commercial activities and travel To China.

Gypressus also praised once again China's measures, and stated that declaring a state of emergency does not mean distrust of China, and that Beijing's fight against the virus is beyond expectation. 

February 3: Gypressus renewed his opposition to restrictions on trade and travel to China.

February 11: The World Health Organization announces the name "Covid-19" for the disease caused by the emerging coronavirus.

February 26: Gebresus expressed his deep concern about the sudden increase in the number of people with corona in Italy, Iran and South Korea.

February 28: Global Health upgraded the SP rating to high from very high.

March 2: Gebresus announced that the outbreak of corona outside China too quickly leads the world into the unknown.

March 6: Gebresus announced an increase in the number of people infected with Corona to 100,000 people, calling on countries to increase the level of restrictions and increase the number of injuries.

March 9: Gypressus said that with the spread of Corona in many countries, the threat of the virus has become more real.

March 11: Global health describes Corona as a "pandemic" global epidemic.

March 12: Gebresus says Corona virus can be controlled.

March 13: Global Health announces that Europe is the epicenter of the Corona virus.

March 18: Gebresus says measures such as the cancellation of sporting events, parties and other large gatherings, may slow the spread of Corona.

March 20: Gypressus announced contact with a number of Chinese companies that have agreed to provide medical equipment to the World Health Organization.

March 24: A Global Health spokesperson indicates that the United States can become the new focus of the virus.

March 27: Gypressus announced that it should wait 12 to 18 months to find a vaccine against Corona.

April 1: Gebresus confirms that the world has never faced such a pandemic before, saying, "It is an unknown and dangerous virus, and I am deeply concerned by the rapid and widespread spread of the epidemic."

Given the chronology of statements, intense criticism and accusations against the World Health Organization may be justified.

International epidemiologists claim that if China called for its borders to be closed to the outside world when it declared on January 30 a global emergency due to Coruna, the world would not have fallen into the grip of the virus.

Experts believe that the organization - to gain the confidence of the international community again - must prove its maturity in the post-epidemic stage, accelerate the efforts to find a vaccine, and undergo a new process of reform after the epidemic.