OFFICIAL RECORDS OF THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION No. 24 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL TO THE WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY AND TO THE UNITED NATIONS 1949 WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION Palais des Nations, Geneva March 1950 ABBREVIATIONS The following abbreviations are used in the Official Records of the World Health Organization : ACC Administrative Committee on Co-ordination ECE - Economic Commission for Europe FAO Food and Agriculture Organization IBE International Bureau of Education ICAO - International Civil Aviation Organization ILO International Labour Organization (Office) IMCO Intergovernmental Maritime Consultative Organization IRO International Refugee Organization ITO International Trade Organization ITU International Telecommunication Union OIHP - Office International d'Hygiène Publique PASB - Pan American Sanitary Bureau PASO Pan American Sanitary Organization TAB Technical Assistance Board TAC Technical Assistance Coinmittee UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNICEF United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund UNRPR United Nations Relief for Palestine Refugees UNRRA - United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration WFUNA - World Federation of United Nations Associations TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Page INTRODUCTION V CHAPTER 7. ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE CHAPTER 1.ADVISORY SERVICES TO GO- Special problems 80 VERNMENTS 1 Staff 80 Finance Campaigns against communicable dis- 81 eases 1 ANNEX 1. MembershipoftheWorld Physical, mental and social well-being 7 Health Organization(31 De- Organization of public health services 10 cember 1949) 82 Professional and technical education 13 ANNEX 2. Membership of the Executive CHAPTER 2.ACTION TAKEN BY GOVERN- Board (31 December 1949) . 83 MENTS ASSISTED BY WHO 23 ANNEX 3. Membership of expert com- Eastern Mediterranean Region 23 mittees (31 December 1949) 84 Western Pacific R gion 30 South-East Asia Region 32 ANNEX 4. Conferences and meetings European Region 37 called by WHO in 1949 . 88 African Region 46 ANNEX 5. Conferences and meetings Region of the Americas 47 called by the United Nations CHAPTER 3. NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN TECH- and specialized agencies in 1949 NICAL SERVICES 52 at which WHO was represented 89 Epidemiology 52 ANNEX 6. Conferences and meetings of Health statistics 56 non-governmental and other Biological standardization 57 organizations in 1949 at which Unificationof pharmacopoeias and WHO was represented. 92 pharmaceuticals 59 Habit-forming drugs 60 ANNEX 7. Tentative schedule of meetings to be called by WHO in 1950 93 Co-ordination of research 61 Editorial and reference services 62 ANNEX 8. Selectedlist oftechnical articles and reports issued by CHAPTER4.RELATIONS WITH OTHER WHO during 1949 95 INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS . 70 United Nations 70 ANNEX 9. Status of contributions to the Specialized agencies 72 budgets for 1948 and 1949 and Non-governmental and other organ- to the working capital fund 101 izations 73 ANNEX 10.Organizational charts . 105 CHAPTER 5.PUBLIC INFORMATION . 75 ANNEX 11.Senior officials of the World CHAPTER 6.CONSTITUTIONAL AND LEGAL Health Organization (31 De- MATTERS cember 1949) 110 Membership 77 Attendance at sessions of the Exe- MAPS cutive Board 77 Associate Members and otherter- 1.World HealthOrganization field ritories 78 activities in 1949 at the request of Regulations regarding nomenclature governments with respect to diseases and causes 2.Regions and regional offices of the of death 78 World Health Organization . Denunciation of the Rome Agreement of 1907 79 3.Networkofepidemiologicalradio- Privileges and immunities 79 telegraph communications INTRODUCTION The annual report on the work of the World Health Organization is, by its very nature, a record of the collaboration of governments and peoples in the endeavour to raise levels of health throughout the world. The pages that follow are, therefore, much more than a chronicle of progress by an organization ; they reflect the growing realization of governments that many health problems require for their effective solution the united action of all the nations. These pages indicate also the readiness of countries to give as well as to accept assistance in this great common task. The programme and policies of the World Health Organization for the year 1949 were laid down by the First Health Assembly, which was convened in Geneva in June 1948 ; they were based on the recommendations of the Interim Commission of WHO, and were to some degree a continuation of its work. The programme was directed towards aiding governments in controlling and preventing disease, in co-ordinating and stimulating public-health work and in strengthening public-health administrations.Particular emphasis was laid on the problems presented by three major diseases-malaria, tuberculosis and venereal diseases- and on the promotion of measures for positive health. The Assembly also set up machinery for expanding the inherited technical services of the Organization (in international epidemio- logy, biological standardization, etc.) and approved the provision of fellowships, medical literature and teaching equipment, as well as emergency services to governments. In addition, a large publications programme was recommended.' Following on these decisions, the Second Health Assembly, held in Rome in July 1949, although mostly concerned with reviewing the Organization's activities in 1948 and with planning for 1950, prescribed the following additional activities for 1949 as preliminary steps towards fulfilling the expanded 1950 programme.In regard to malaria, plans were to be worked out jointly with FAO for long-term programmes in 1950 in areas where, side by side with the control of malaria and the raising of general standards of health, world food production might be increased. Work on health statistics was to be extended ; assistance was to be given in the work of modernizing UNRRA-donated penicillin plants and arranging for the availability of essential medical supplies, particularly for the war-damaged countries of Europe ; assistance was also to be given to the United Nations project for the relief of Palestine refugees ;finally, increased, emphasis was to be laid on medical training, sanitation and nursing. 2 The Executive Board, at its third and fourth sessions, held during the year, gave effect to the decisions of the Assembly and worked out the details of the Organization's future programme.At its third session (Geneva, February-March) it also devoted itself to the preparation of the programme and budget for 1950, and at the fourth (Geneva, July), much attention was given to formulating measures designed to ensure the optimum efficiency in the Organization and to facilitate the work of the Third Health Assembly.s The recommenda- tions of the Board have played an important part in the progress made by WHO during 1949. 1 For the report on the First World Health Assembly, see Off. Rec. World Hlth Org., 13. 2 For the report on the Second World Health Assembly, see Oft. Rec. World Hlth Org., 21. 3 For the membership of the Executive Board, see Annex 2. For the reports on its third and fourth sessions, see Off. Rec. World Hlth Org., 17 and 23. VI ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL Services to Governments One indication of the progress of the Organization's work during 1949 is to be found in the marked increase both in the direct services provided by WHO and in the number of countries receiving these services. Experience has shown that little is to be gained by sending experts from one country to another which is at a different level of economic development and by introducing techniques used in some areas into other areas to which they are not necessarily applicable. WHO has therefore preferred to assist governments to improve their own public-health services and to equip themselves to solve their own particular problems. The report of the year 1949 shows that the Organization, though still at an early stage of development, is capable of strengthening government services in this way. In answer to requests for assistance, WHO consultants-specialists in communicable diseases, public-health administrators, nurses and sanitary engineers-have been sent to more than half of the Member countries on a short-term basis, to make surveys and give advice on public-health programmes. The first WHO advisory and demonstration projects have been established ; ten teams have undertaken active work in South-East Asia and the Mediterranean, and by the end of the year others had been sent to the Western Pacific and the Americas. They have employed new methods and have helped governments to carry on intensive campaigns both for the eradication of disease and for the promotion of positive health. An unforeseen but valuable effect of the sending of these teams has been that in many cases their arrival has brought about a marked increase of interest and activity on the part of the healfh administrations in the areas. Besides providing some of the team members, governments have often set up similar projects or teams of their own, which have worked either side by side with the WHO teams, or sometimes in other parts of the country on entirely different projects. During the year WHO awarded over two hundred fellowships and provided medical literature, teaching equipment and emergency supplies.It is noteworthy that certain WHO services are being found valuable even by countries technically advanced in the field of health. As the wide range of the Organization's services becomes better known