By Francesco Guarascio

BRUSSELS (Reuters). Reuters has seen an internal document that Reuters obtained from Reuters. The plan to overhaul funding for the World Health Organization (WHO), was partially watered back after being under pressure by the United States of America and other countries.

The WHO currently receives a majority of its funding from voluntary donations from government and private donors. This arrangement is not sustainable, according to the U.N. agency as well independent panels of experts.

A WHO working group suggested in January that mandatory contributions be increased to agency budget to lessen agency dependence on donors with strings attached.

However, after being criticized by several donor countries, including the United States of America, mandatory fee increases have been linked to U.N. reforms that are meant to improve efficiency and transparency, according to WHO’s internal document.

According to the U.N. agency, there are still changes in the draft reform and it may not be necessary for strict payment increases.

The original proposal would have the mandatory fees of member states gradually increase from 2024, so that they account for half the $2 billion agency core budget in the 2028-29 biennium. This would be a significant change to the 20% currently.

This payment hike would give the WHO a stable source of funding. According to the supporters, this would make the WHO more self-sufficient and efficient.

In line with their larger economies, the United States pays the WHO’s largest membership fee. The United States has also pushed for the G20 to fund a pandemic preparedness fund at the World Bank.

Washington hasn’t said whether it would support a 50% increase in mandatory fee, which would add $240million per year to the U.S. budget by 2029. But, Washington has openly asked for WHO’s efficiency and improvement in its operation before any funding reform.

According to Reuters, the compromise text was reached by negotiators after months of negotiations.

New draft, April 11, 2011, makes an increase in assessed fees or mandatory fees conditional upon governance reforms.

The 2024-2025 budget would see a first increase in fees. However, two subsequent budget increases would bring the mandatory fees up to half of their total to 2029 if efficiency reforms are implemented.

The principle is that the Secretariat must demonstrate greater value for money in exchange for Member States investing more in AC (Assessed Contributions).” This refers to WHO’s executive board.

It could be that, if governance reforms are not adopted by WHO, the WHO’s mandated budget will increase to less than 50%.

It said that the WHO was working to create a roadmap document, which would include milestones on transparency in spending, and other measures needed for better governance.

Negotiators will meet next week to discuss both the WHO roadmap reform document. For the WHO annual meeting, in May, the formal proposal on funding restructuring will be submitted.