What is the primary purpose of the World Health Organization (WHO)?

• A. To coordinate international health responses and improve public health globally.
• B. To regulate global trade in pharmaceuticals.
• C. To enforce national health policies.
• D. To fund military medical research.

Answer: (A)

Global health governance is the key idea. The World Health Organization functions as the leading international body for health, coordinating responses to health emergencies, setting international health standards, and helping countries strengthen their health systems to improve health outcomes for people worldwide. That makes the described aim—coordinating international health responses and improving public health globally—the best fit.

Other options miss the core function: regulating global pharmaceutical trade is handled mainly by trade bodies like the WTO, not WHO; enforcing national health policies is the job of each sovereign state, with WHO offering guidance and support rather than enforcement; and funding military medical research falls outside its civilian public health mandate.