[What does the WHO do?]

The role of the World Health Organization (WHO) is a central question in the ongoing debate on reforms of the institutional architecture of global health. The WHO's management of the Covid-19 pandemic drew strong criticism, highlighted by both its difficulty in orchestrating a coordinated global response to the emergency and its inability to ensure equity between high-income and low-income countries in access to vaccines. The debate over the role of the WHO has resurfaced in recent months, following the announcement of the United States' withdrawal from the organization last January and the anticipation of a 40 % reduction in its resources for 2026-2027, pushing the WHO into an urgent exercise of prioritization.