80 years strong: the WHO Constitution

This commentary was originally published by Dr Tedros on his social media accounts: X, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Eighty years ago this week - in July 1946 - nations emerging from the devastation of the Second World War chose cooperation over division. They signed the Constitution of the WHO, founded on a bold and radical idea: that health is key to peace and security, and that health is a human right.

Eight decades later, in a troubled and divided world, that vision matters more than ever.

The Constitution remains our compass. WHO remains the place where countries come together to confront health challenges that none of us can solve alone.

As we mark this anniversary, we also remember the individuals whose vision helped make it possible.

The WHO Constitution did not appear overnight. Dr Thomas Parran, U.S. Surgeon General, convened and chaired the 1946 International Health Conference in New York, where delegates finalized and signed the Constitution. His leadership helped turn an ambitious vision into an international institution.

Dr Thomas Parran, Surgeon General of the U.S. Public Health Service, and Dr Martha M. Eliot, Associate Director of the Children's Bureau of the Department of Labor, during the 1946 International Health Conference in New York, where the WHO Constitution was finalized and signed. Credit: © WHO.

At the 1945 San Francisco Conference establishing the UN, Chinese diplomat Dr Szeming Sze first proposed creating a dedicated global health organization. Together with Brazil's Dr Geraldo de Paula Souza, he transformed that vision into reality. Their partnership embodied a principle that still defines WHO today: progress happens when countries work together.

The WHO idea did not emerge from scratch. Dr Raymond Gautier of Switzerland brought his experience from the League of Nations Health Organisation into the creation of WHO, helping bridge two eras of international cooperation and ensuring valuable lessons were not lost. He later served as one of the first Assistant Director-Generals from 1948 until his retirement in 1950.

But the man who was the initial author of the broader conceptions of international health work that developed between the two World Wars was Polish Ludwik Rajchman, Medical Director of the Health Organization of the League. He later played a key role in the establishment of UNICEF.

Before WHO existed, health was often defined simply as the absence of disease. Dr Andrija Štampar, a Croat representing Yugoslavia at the time, and others believed humanity deserved a bigger vision. His words at the 1946 International Health Conference became the opening of the WHO Constitution: "Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being." He later served as the first president of the World Health Assembly (WHA) in 1948.

Norwegian physician Dr Karl Evang was among the architects who shaped WHO's foundations. As a member of the Technical Preparatory Committee, he helped define how the world's new health organization would work, demonstrating that lasting institutions are built through expertise, dialogue and shared purpose.

Building WHO required more than vision. It required drafting every principle, every article and every commitment. Sir William Jameson represented the United Kingdom throughout the drafting process and submitted one of the constitutional texts that helped shape the final document.

France also played a key role. André Cavaillon and Xavier Leclainche co-submitted France's draft Constitution, contributing ideas that informed the final text signed 80 years ago.

Dr Brock Chisholm did not draft the Constitution. He brought it to life. As WHO's first Director-General, he transformed its founding vision into action, leading the Organization through its earliest years and helping establish the institution we know today.

Dr Brock Chisholm, from Canada, Director-General of the World Health Organization from 1948 to 1953. Credit: © WHO

African leaders also played an important role in shaping the WHO Constitution:

• Liberia's Dr Joseph Nathaniel Togba helped draft and sign the Constitution before later serving as the seventh President of the World Health Assembly;
• Egypt's Dr Aly Tewfik Shousha Pasha chaired the Scope and Functions Committee, responsible for defining exactly what the WHO's global mandate, responsibilities, and day-to-day duties would be;
• Ethiopia's Mr Getahoun Tesemma championed transparent public health reporting and intervened in structural constitutional debates to advocate for developing countries; and
• South Africa's Dr Harry Sutherland Gear signed the WHO Constitution on behalf of the Union of South Africa, and later served as a member of the Executive Board, and as senior WHO official helping shape its early administrative and technical structures.

The WHO Constitution was never the work of one nation. It was built through international collaboration and signed by representatives from every region of the world.

Different cultures. Different political systems. Different histories.

United by one belief: health is a fundamental human right.

That idea has helped billions of people live longer, healthier lives over the past 80 years.

It is just as essential today as it was in 1946.

Happy 80th anniversary, to the World's Health Organization!