WHO Collaborating Centres

Contents

WHO Collaborating Centres are institutions designated by the World Health Organization to support its public health mandates through research, training, and technical assistance. They form a global network linking national institutes such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Public Health England, and the Pasteur Institute with intergovernmental bodies like the United Nations and regional agencies including the Pan American Health Organization and the European Commission. The centres collaborate on priority areas such as infectious diseases, noncommunicable diseases, and health systems, often interacting with actors like the Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the World Bank.

Overview

The network comprises institutions including the National Institutes of Health, Karolinska Institute, Johns Hopkins University, University of Oxford, and the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment that provide technical expertise, laboratory capacity, and policy advice to initiatives such as the International Health Regulations (2005), the Global Health Security Agenda, and responses to outbreaks like Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa and COVID-19 pandemic. Partners range from academic centres like Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and University of Tokyo to specialized bodies like the World Reference Center for Emerging Viruses and national reference laboratories such as Robert Koch Institute and Institut Pasteur de Dakar. Activities often intersect with global programmes including the Expanded Programme on Immunization, Global Polio Eradication Initiative, and Stop TB Partnership.

The scheme originated in the early decades of the World Health Organization alongside postwar institutions such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the International Labour Organization, evolving during milestones like the establishment of the Global Malaria Programme and the declaration of smallpox eradication after the World Health Assembly campaigns. Expansion accelerated following health crises such as the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the SARS outbreak, and the H1N1 influenza pandemic, prompting collaboration with research funders including the Wellcome Trust, the National Institutes of Health (United States), and regional bodies like the African Union. Over time centres affiliated with institutions such as Mayo Clinic, Mount Sinai Health System, and the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention were designated to support WHO strategies including those of the World Health Assembly and WHO Emergency Programme.

Designation procedures involve WHO headquarters in Geneva, regional offices like WHO Regional Office for Europe and WHO Regional Office for Africa, and national authorities such as ministries including the Ministry of Health (United Kingdom), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (India), and Ministry of Health and Social Protection (Colombia). Agreements specify terms of reference, mirroring standards employed by institutions like the International Organization for Standardization and the Council of Europe. Governance includes reporting to WHO through frameworks akin to those used by the World Bank for grant oversight and coordination with entities such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Centres undertake laboratory diagnostics, surveillance support, capacity building, and guideline development in fields represented by organizations such as the World Organisation for Animal Health, Food and Agriculture Organization, and the International Atomic Energy Agency. They contribute to policy instruments like the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines, clinical guidance used in hospitals like Cleveland Clinic, and training programmes modeled after those at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and University of Cape Town. During emergencies, centres coordinate with responders such as Médecins Sans Frontières, International Committee of the Red Cross, and national emergency operations centres to support containment of threats exemplified by Zika virus outbreak and H5N1 avian influenza.

The network is structured across WHO regions including collaborations with institutions like Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, and Australian National University. Nodes include reference laboratories, academic departments, and policy institutes such as the London School of Economics health policy units, linking to consortia like the Global Health Network and partnerships including COVAX. Communication channels mirror those of UN systems, involving bodies like UNICEF, UNDP, and regional development banks such as the Asian Development Bank.

Performance assessment uses peer review, site visits, and reporting norms comparable to evaluations by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and accreditation processes like those of the Joint Commission International. Quality assurance draws on standards from institutions like the World Organisation for Animal Health and laboratories such as the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, ensuring compliance with protocols related to the International Health Regulations (2005) and laboratory biosafety frameworks influenced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health.

Critics point to issues familiar from debates involving the World Health Organization and donors such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Gates Foundation, including unequal geographic distribution, resource dependency observed with actors like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and governance tensions similar to those in relationships between the World Bank and recipient states. Challenges include coordination across networks like the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network, data sharing disputes reminiscent of controversies involving the COVID-19 pandemic and intellectual property debates parallel to those in the World Trade Organization and TRIPS Agreement. Calls for reform echo recommendations from commissions such as the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response and the High-level Panel on Access to Medicines.