Dhaka, March 29 -- The World Health Organization (WHO) is proposing to reduce staff numbers and the scale of its work as it slashes its budget by just over one fifth due to the impact of US funding cuts, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.

US President Donald Trump's administration withdrew from the WHO upon taking office in January, saying the global health agency had mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic and other international health crises. The US is by far the UN health agency's biggest financial backer, contributing around 18 percent of its overall funding.

"The United States' announcement, combined with recent reductions in official development assistance by some countries to fund increased defence spending, has made our si...