On 20 December 2024, Luxembourg signed two strategic agreements with the World Health Organization (WHO), reaffirming its commitment to global health. The Strategic Partnership Framework (SPF) with the Ministry of Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs amounts to €46.5 million, the largest-ever agreement between WHO and Luxembourg. Additionally, a first-ever multiyear agreement with the Ministry of Health and Social Safety, worth €1 million, was launched as the country's first voluntary contribution to WHO.
The agreements will support WHO's work from 2025 to 2028, focusing on priority areas such as sanitary crisis preparedness and response, and the fight against health inequalities, with a special focus on gender, according to Martine Deprez, Luxembourg's Minister of Health and Social Safety.
The €46.5 million includes fully flexible and thematic funding, as well as allocations for the Universal Health Coverage Partnership, tropical disease research, and polio eradication. The flexible funding allows WHO to direct resources to areas of highest need.
Xavier Bettel, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Cooperation and Foreign Trade, said the agreements reflect Luxembourg's strong commitment to promoting global health and multilateralism. WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted the symbolic timing on the International Day of Solidarity, calling the agreements 'a strong statement of solidarity by Luxembourg, not just with WHO, but with the people of the world.'
Source: World Health Organization
