Skip to Main Content

Archives of International Organisations based in Geneva

Guide listing the institutional archives of international organisations based in Geneva, supplemented with a few tips for searching for documents.

WHO – World Health Organization Archives

World Health Organisation

The WHO Archives conserve more than three linear kilometres of documents. They include textual paper documents, such as correspondence, reports, and certificates, as well as numerous photographs and some sound recordings.

The WHO Archives holds documents produced by organisations involved in international health before the foundation of the WHO.

The WHO Regional Offices also keep archives of their work. If required, the Records and Archives service at Headquarters will get in touch with them.

Access policy: archives may be consulted by researchers when the records are at least 20 years old.

Consultation: by appointment (Request form).

The fonds of the WHO Archives include:

The Special Collections of the WHO Archives are:

  • Stamp Collection 
  • Numismatic Collection
  • Sound Collection
  • Oral History
  • Former Staff History

Meetings of governing bodies: Documentation of WHO for Executive Board sessions and Health Assemblies from 1998.

The WHO Library is the world’s leading library on public health. It provides access to knowledge from WHO as well as to other sources of scientific literature produced around the world: search the catalogue.