10 Financial Report: WHO presents financial statements on an annual basis. The financial reporting period is from 1 January to 31 December. WHO presents the financial report to the External Auditor by the end of February of the following year then to the World Health Assembly in May. The financial report is issued as a separate document entitled "Audited Financial Statements". It is to be read with the "WHO Results Report", which provides an overview of the organizational performance. Following the closure of the accounts the financial report production begins. Each statement, note and schedule agrees with the official accounting database. Any deviations must be fully documented and approved by the Director of Accounts.
20 Responsibility: The Comptroller and the Director-General are responsible for issuing the financial statements and presenting them to the member states. The World Health Assembly has the responsibility to approve the financial statements by way of a resolution.
30 Current versus non-current classification: WHO uses current and non-current classifications when preparing its financial statements. The term "current" refers to financial periods occurring within 12 months following the reporting dates (i.e. 12 months following 31.12.20xx).
40 Authorization date: The audited financial statements are approved by the World Health Assembly (normally in May of the following year).
50 Working papers are prepared for each section of the report and cleared by the Head Accounts and Financial Reporting. The entire financial report is cleared through the Comptroller and presented to the Assistant Director-General, General Management Group (ADG/GMG) and Deputy Director General, Corporate Operations, who in turn presents the report to the Director-General.
60 The External Auditor provides a letter of transmittal and the formal audit opinion which are included in the audited financial statements. The full audit report is presented as a separate document to the WHA.
70 Certification: The Comptroller and Director-General jointly sign the financial report certifying that the financial statements, notes to the statements and supporting schedules have been approved.
80 Representation letter: The letter of representation is completed each year to certify the efficient and effective management of resources and that policies and procedures are applied consistently. This letter is signed by the DG, RDs, DDGs and ADGs.
90 Statement of internal control: The statement of internal control outlines the effectiveness of internal controls, key risks and the risk response actions. It is signed by the Director-General.
100 The audited financial statements includes the following sections:
- Statement of Internal Control
- Certification of financial statements
- Letter of Transmittal
- Opinion of the External Auditor
- Statement of Financial Position
- Statement of Financial Performance
- Statement of Changes in Net Assets/Equity
- Statement of Cash Flows
- Statement of Comparison of Budget and Actual Amounts
- Notes to the Financial Statements
- Schedules
110 Cash flow statements: WHO uses the indirect method of cash flow whereby net surplus or deficit is adjusted for the effects of transactions of a non-cash nature, any deferrals or accruals of past or future operating cash receipts or payments, and items of revenue or expense associated with investing or financing cash flows.
120 Segment reporting: Based on the criteria in IPSAS 18, WHO reports segments based on the geographical (regional) structure. Income, expense, assets and liabilities will be reported for each major office (region). The use of major offices is in line with the way that member states and management make decisions over the allocation of resources to the WHO. The WHO Programme Budget is presented by a major office which supports its use as the segment for this Standard (IPSAS 18). Furthermore the accountability for results and management of assets and liabilities lies with the heads of each regional office. Revenue is centrally recorded and accounted for, hence disaggregation of revenue is considered not feasible. Therefore, revenue is recorded where it is accounted for segment reporting purposes. Explanatory notes are provided in the notes disclosure. Expense by nature is reported for each segment. Assets and liabilities are reported in the segment where it is recorded.
130 Presentation of budget information in financial reports: WHO considers the final Programme Budget for a biennium noted by the World Health Assembly (WHA) as the "approved budget" as per IPSAS 24. Although the Organization has adopted an annual financial reporting period as stipulated in the revised Financial Regulation XIII, the budgetary period remains a biennium (Financial Regulation II).
140 Biennial budgets: WHO makes public a biennium budget covering a two-year period rather than separate annual budgets. The Programme Budget does not contain specific details by year. IPSAS 24 allows for "judgment" to be used to find a way to apportion the budget to a single year. As it is virtually impossible to analyze and divide activities by year in a meaningful way, WHO reports the first year results against the full two year budget.
150 Budget comparable basis: Financial statements for WHO (Statement I to Statement IV) are prepared on the basis of full accrual accounting, whereas the Programme Budget is prepared based on a modified cash accounting basis. WHO uses fund accounting to reconcile the financial statements to the approved budget. For the purposes of making comparisons between the actual expenses and the planned budget, the biennium's budget is set against two years of annual expenses. The Statement of Comparison of Budget and Actual Amounts (Statement V) provides this comparison by category. In addition to the General Fund (the programme budget), two other fund groups are included in WHO's financial statements: Member States – other and the Fiduciary Fund. Details of the revenue and expenses for each of these three main fund groups can be found in Schedule I of the report.
