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On March 22, 1949 Costa Rica ratified the constitution of the World Health Organization and on April 13 WHO was joined by Honduras, thus bringing the membership of the organization to 61.The agreement by which the Pan American Sanitary Organization became the regional office for WHO in the western hemisphere was signed on May 24, 1949 in Washington by Dr. Brock Chisholm, Director General of WHO and Dr. Fred L. Soper, Director of the Pan American Sanitary Office. Under the agreement the office was to adopt and promote health and sanitary conventions and programs in the western hemisphere provided they were "compatible with the policy and programs of the World Health Organization and are separately financed."

Designed as a collective instrument to raise the standards of health and well-being of all peoples throughout the world, a new World Health Organization was launched, under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council, by the International Health Conference, which met at Hunter College, June 19 to July 22, 1946.

The Executive Board of the World Health Organization held its 14th session i n Geneva on May 27 and 28, 1954. Dr. H. Hyde (United States) was elected Chairman of the Board. Many of the decisions taken by the Executive Board implemented recommendations approved at the seventh World Health Assembly..

The fifteenth session of the Assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO) was held in Geneva from May 8 to 25, 1962, under the presidency of Dr. S. V. Kurashov (Minister of Health of the Soviet Union). The Assembly approved an effective working budget of $29,956,000 for 1963, representing an increase of $5,092,200 over the figure for 1962.

From May 5 to 22, 1952 the Fifth World Health Assembly met in Geneva. In his opening remarks, Dr. Leonard A. Scheele, president of the Fourth World Health Assembly, summarized events during the first four years of the World Health Organization and stressed the central importance of the problems of the education of public health and related personnel and personnel shortages to the accomplishment of WHO's aims.1 The remainder of the first plenary meeting was devoted to speeches by representatives of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the World Meteorological Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization, who stressed the need for cooperation between their respective organizations and WHO. Dr. Juan Salcedo (Philippines) was elected president by acclamation at the second plenary meeting. On May 6, the Assembly voted to admit the United Kingdom of Libya to membership in the organization, and on May 12, Tunisia and Morocco were admitted as associate members, subject to notice of acceptance of associate membership on their behalf.

The Executive Board of the World Health Organization (WHO) held its 29th session in Geneva on January 15–26, 1962, under the chairmanship of Dr. A. O. Abu Shumma. The Standing Committee on Administration and Finance held eight meetings. The Standing Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations held two meetings and considered new applications from organizations for official membership, as well as carrying out a quadrennial review of the organizations in official relationship with WHO. The Standing Committee on Headquarters Accommodations also met.

The tenth Assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO), held in Geneva from May 7 to 24, 1957, was attended by the delegates of 79 member and associate member states. After unanimously electing Dr. S. Al-Wahbi (Iraq) president, the Assembly adopted the report of the Committee on Credentials by 58 votes to o with 5 abstentions.

From June 1 to 8, 1951 the World Health Organization Executive Board met for its eighth session in Geneva under the chairmanship of Professor Jacques Parisot. Action taken at this session included authorization of the establishment of a regional organization for Africa, a request that the Director-General (Chisholm) contact member states in Europe concerning establishment of a central regional office in Geneva and immediate constitution of a regional organization, and appointment of a regional director for the western Pacific.

The World Health Organization sponsored an inter-regional conference on rabies, held on Coonoor, India, during July 1952, which gave intensive and individual training in complicated laboratory procedures to an international group. A consultant staff of eight members gave lectures, led discussions, and supervised the laboratory work of 47 participants. One of die objects of die conference was to teach standardized procedures in rabies tests so that results obtained in laboratories diroughout the world might be compared.

The annual report of the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) for the year 1956 was a comprehensive account of the year's accomplishments, in which particular emphasis was laid on the eradication of certain communicable diseases, especially malaria, on WHO's role in the development of national health services and on the effect of the research stimulated, promoted or coordinated by WHO on the national health administrations. The report also referred to the responsibility of WHO in a new field of public health—the peaceful uses of atomic energy.

The eighteenth session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Executive Board was held in Geneva from May 28 to 30, 1956. The session was devoted largely to administrative matters. The Board chose for technical discussion at the tenth and eleventh WHO Assemblies, respectively, the subjects, "The Role of the Hospital in the Public-Health Program" and "Health Education of the Public". The Board noted the reports of the expert committee on maternal and child health, the committee on malaria eradication, and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)/WHO joint committee on health policy.

At the request of the Director-General (Chisholm) of the World Health Organization, the Secretary-General of the United Nations (Lie) transmitted on March 20, 1952 to the People's Republic of China and the People's Democratic Republic of North Korea WHO's offer of assistance in controlling reported epidemics in north Korea. Two further telegrams were sent on March 27 and April 3 but no acknowledgment or reply had been received.

Eighth World Health AssemblyThe Eighth World Health Assembly met in University City, Mexico from May 10 to 27, 1955, and elected Dr. I. M. Prieto (Mexico) as its president. In presenting his annual report, Dr. Candau, the Director- General of the World Health Organization (WHO) noted the need for a change in strategy in WHO's malaria-control program, and emphasized the possible implications which the new field of the peaceful use of atomic energy might have for WHO. During the general discussion of the Director-General's report, the delegates noted with satisfaction that WHO was placing more emphasis on long-term programs which might be integrated in the public health services of the countries assisted by WHO. Delegates also made suggestions for future programs including such matters as malaria eradication, environmental sanitation, nutrition, and mental health.

From May 20 to 30, 1953, the Executive Board of the World Health Organization met in Geneva in its twelfth session. For the most part, the Board considered decisions of the Sixth World Health Assembly. One of the major problems was that of technical discussions at Assemblies. The Sixth World Health Assembly having requested the Executive Board to study the matter of organization and conduct of technical discussion at future Assemblies, in the light of recommendations made during that Assembly, the Board made a number of relevant decisions. Among them were the following: the topic for the discussions at the Seventh Assembly should be public-health problems in rural areas, the discussions should be continued on an informal basis and should be limited to a total period of not more than two working days, and the Director-General was requested to take appropriate action to prepare the technical discussions in accordance with this decision. The entire question of technical discussions at subsequent Assemblies was to be considered by the Board at its thirteenth session.