With the key members exiting, who loses relevance? Will India reconsider its position? |World News
Worldwide, trust in the World Health Organization (WHO) is being reassessed. The U.S. decision to leave the agency marked a turning point, prompting countries such as Argentina, Hungary and Russia to reconsider their ties. Critics argue that people who no longer act as neutral health institutions are increasingly shaped by some powerful donors and external interests.
This suggests a broader problem: a global health system that is often placed on national reality, resists adaptive decision-making, and places ideology on actual results. This rigidity is a serious limitation for people living in India who have multiple health challenges. India has records of drawing its own courses. During the HIV/AIDS crisis, it firmly opposed transnational pressure to provide affordable global access to generic drug reduction definitions. The polio movement in India has succeeded through local innovation and community-led outreach rather than import frameworks. During the COVID-19 pandemic, India not only developed its own digital vaccination platform (Cowin), but also led a global call for exemptions to travel to secure vaccine assets. These are not just success stories of health, they are the blueprint for health sovereignty. There is nothing more obvious than in tobacco control, where global policy has become a large donor-driven. The Framework Convention (FCTC) on whom the largest country like India has also raised questions.
As India envisions Atmanirbhar Bharat, this self-reliance must extend to public health decisions. This includes advocating a greater voice to represent the global health priorities of the Global South and encouraging a more flexible, context-sensitive implementation agenda. Experts say India should require the global funding mechanism to be supplemented, rather than covering national expertise and evidence. In addition, meaningful investment in domestic public health infrastructure, especially tobacco quit smoking, reduce harm and promote structured public-private participation voices from Indian industries, research institutions, civil society and state health systems; establish context-aware, sustainable solutions, rooted in Indian reality.
The world is at a crossroads, and so is India. It’s not about getting rid of multilateralism, but about playing a leadership role that better reflects who we are and what we need. If global frameworks are to truly serve the Global South, they must be shaped by the people who live and lead. And, there is no better moment or the country and India begin this transformation than now.
