On May 20, 2025, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that world leaders pledged at least an additional US$ 170 million to the WHO at the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly in Geneva.

Amid rising global health challenges, leaders reaffirmed their support for multilateral cooperation through these contributions to WHO’s Investment Round (IR). Earlier, Member States approved an increase in Assessed Contributions, adding a separate US$ 90 million a year of income, and marking another important step on WHO’s journey towards sustainable financing.

The IR is raising funds for WHO’s strategy for global health, the Fourteenth General Programme of Work, which can save an additional 40 million lives over the next four years. The pledges represent significant contributions from both governments and philanthropic partners.

Among the announcements at least US$ 170 million is for the Investment Round, meaning that the funding supports WHO’s base budget from 2025–2028. Eight of the donors included a flexible contribution to WHO, the most valuable sort of funding, and four were first time donors.

WHO’s fundraising reach has also been extended through individual giving. Through the One World Movement, almost 8000 people from across the world have signed on as ‘Member Citizens’, contributing almost US$ 600 000 in donations, many monthly – a powerful expression of global solidarity and an affirmation that every voice counts.