Governance
The WHO Regional Committee for Africa is the Organization's decision-making body on health policy in the African Region. It comprises of Ministers of Health or their representatives from each of the 47 Member States in the Region. The main functions of the Regional Committee include formulating regional policies and supervising the regional office as set out in Article 50 of the WHO Constitution. The Committee also nominates the Regional Director for Africa every five years and transmits its decision to the WHO Executive Board for endorsement. The Regional Committee usually meets each year in August and the Regional Director acts as its Secretary.
The Regional Committee is guided in its work by its Rules of Procedure and the WHO Constitution.
Useful documents
- Rules of Procedure of the Regional Committee for Africa
- WHO Constitution
- Accreditation of regional non-State actors not in official relations with WHO to participate in the WHO Regional Committee for Africa
- Request to submit a statement by accredited non-State actors at sessions of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa
- WHO Regional Committee for Africa: Guide for Member States and participants
Seventy-sixth session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa
The Seventy-sixth session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa is scheduled to be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 24 to 28 August 2026, bringing together health ministers and senior officials from the 47 Member States to discuss and endorse regional health policies, strategies and plans, improving the health of the people in Africa.
The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the supreme decision-making body for WHO. (See Articles 10-23 of WHO Constitution). It meets in Geneva, in May, and all 194 WHO Member States participate. The WHA appoints the Director-General, approves the biennial programme budget, considers reports and approves resolutions, put forward by the Executive Board.
The Executive Board (EB) is composed of 34 Members (7 members from the African region), technically qualified in the field of health, who are elected by the WHA, and serve for a three-year term. (See Articles 24-29 of the WHO Constitution). The EB meets twice a year. In January, the EB approves the provisional agenda for the WHA, reviews reports and approves draft resolutions to be considered by the WHA.
The Programme, Budget and Administration Committee (PBAC) is composed of twelve EB members (two from each region), along with the Chair of the EB, and one Vice-Chair. The term of membership is two years. The PBAC meets just before the January EB meeting, and immediately prior to the WHA.
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The Programme Subcommittee (PSC) is a subsidiary body of the Regional Committee. It assists the Regional Committee by reviewing the budget, strategies, reports and proposed resolutions and advising on policy and governance matters.
The Programme Subcommittee consists of 18 representatives of Member States. In line with the Terms of Reference of the PSC, three Executive Board members from the African Region and the Geneva-based Coordinator of the Africa Group also attend the subcommittee meetings as observers.
Download the terms of reference of the PSC of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa [PDF]
Programme Subcommittee Members
Subregion 1
- Algeria (2023–2026)
- Benin (2023–2026)
- Burkina Faso (2024–2027)
- Ghana (2024–2027)
- Guinea-Bissau (2025–2028)
- Gambia (2025–2028)
Subregion 2
- Gabon (2023–2026)
- Kenya (2023–2026)
- Equatorial Guinea (2024–2027)
- Chad (2024–2027)
- Ethiopia (2025–2028)
- Rwanda (2025–2028)
Subregion 3
- Zambia (2023–2026)
- Angola (2023–2026)
- Malawi (2024–2027)
- Mauritius (2024–2027)
- Botswana (2025–2028)
- Madagascar (2025–2028)
The World Health Assembly is the highest decision-making body of WHO. It is attended by delegations from all WHO Member States and focuses on a specific health agenda prepared by the Executive Board.The main functions of the World Health Assembly are to determine the policies of the Organization, appoint the Director-General, supervise financial policies, and review and approve the proposed programme budget. The Health Assembly is held annually in Geneva, Switzerland.
Next Health Assembly
- Seventieth World Health Assembly » (22-31 May 2017)
The evolution of WHO’s work and the increasing number of entities associated with global health has necessitated changes in the way WHO is governed, and the way WHO engages with external stakeholders. In this regard, WHO’s governance reform aims to strengthen both the internal governance of WHO by Member States, as well as the role of WHO in global health governance.
GOVERNANCE REFORMThe proposals for change in respect of internal governance focus on improving the work of the governing bodies – the World Health Assembly, the Executive Board and the Regional Committees – including strengthening global-regional linkages. The fundamental objectives for the internal governance reforms are to foster a more strategic and disciplined approach to priority setting, to enhance the oversight of the programmatic and financial aspects of the Organization, and to improve the efficiency and inclusivity of intergovernmental consensus-building.
In relation to WHO’s engagement with external stakeholders, WHO is exploring ways to more effectively collaborate with relevant stakeholders including nongovernmental organizations, partnerships, the private sector, foundations, and other relevant stakeholders with a view to promoting greater coherence in global health. The challenge here is to determine how WHO can engage with a wider range of players without undermining its intergovernmental nature or opening itself to influence by those with vested interests. Moreover, governance reforms aim to strengthen the multilateral role of WHO and to capitalize more effectively on WHO’s leadership position in global health.
