The decision by the United States to suspend funding for the World Health Organization (WHO) amid the coronavirus pandemic will affect many projects in Kurdistan and the rest of Iraq, as well as in countries worldwide, Nezar Ismet Taib, the chief health official in Duhok Province of the Iraqi region of Kurdistan, said in an interview with Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th April, 2020) The decision by the United States to suspend funding for the World Health Organization (WHO) amid the coronavirus pandemic will affect many projects in Kurdistan and the rest of Iraq, as well as in countries worldwide, Nezar Ismet Taib, the chief health official in Duhok Province of the Iraqi region of Kurdistan, said in an interview with Sputnik.
Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump ordered that funding be halted for the WHO over negligence, claiming that the cover-up of the true scale of the COVID-19 initial outbreak China by the UN health agency impeded the global response to the pandemic.
"We need the World Health Organization and all its expertise and experience in dealing with this pandemic, to lead us and to lead small countries with very limited resources. It is a must. I disagree with this suspension of funds [by the US] as it may affect many of the projects in even the Kurdistan Region, as well as in Iraq," Taib said, adding that "it will affect many health systems all over the world."
According to the Duhok official, the WHO must remain the leading agency at the core of global effort against the pandemic.
He further called all stakeholders for patience when studying how to deal with the global health emergency. He opined that any concerns about the UN health agency should be compromised for the time being for the sake of a coordinated global effort in tackling COVID-19.
With regard to Iraq, in particular, the official said there was a long-term cooperation history with the WHO, with numerous projects underway in Kurdistan that could suffer a hit due to disrupted funding.
"We need the WHO to be funded in order to complete our projects and also to keep them with us. I know that the WHO may have issues or problems but in general, the WHO is much needed to be funded during this pandemic," Taib opined.
According to Taib, the WHO accounts for the biggest part of health care funding coming from abroad, in addition to help and assistance with the provision of health services and, especially, preventive measures, as per an agreement signed with the Iraqi Ministry of Health.
The World Health Organization provides daily situation reports on the developments associated with the coronavirus pandemic, including figures on cases and fatalities and news on vaccine development, among other things. According to the latest update, more than 2.8 million people have been infected globally and the death toll has surpassed 193,000, as of Monday.
