In 2021, the World Health Organization’s total procurement volume amounted to almost $1.7 billion, making the agency the sixth biggest procurer among the organizations within the United Nations system.
Data from the U.N.’s annual statistical report — which only covers contracts over $30,000 — shows that of this amount, $1.3 billion was spent on major contracts.
This is down $115.1 million from the previous year, but that needs to be placed in context. There was a massive jump in major contract spending in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic response. That year’s $1.4 billion tally was more than twice the spending on major contracts in 2019.