It is the specialized agency of United Nations, founded in 1948. It is headquartered at Geneva, Switzerland.
It provides leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends. It consists of 194 member states. India became a party to the WHO on 12 January 1948. Regional office for South East Asia is located in New Delhi.
