# who-gho-mcp-server [Health: Active]
**Category:** 💻 Developer Tools
**Repository:** https://github.com/cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server
**GitHub Stars:** 2
**Views:** 0
**Installs:** 0
**Upvotes:** 0
**Directory Page:** https://allmcps.com/mcp/who-gho-mcp-server
## Description
WHO Global Health Observatory — 3,059 indicators across 194 member states.
## Claude Desktop Quick Installation
Install path detected from listing signals. Uses `bunx` (confidence: high):
```json
"mcpServers": {
"who-gho-mcp-server": {
"command": "bunx",
"args": ["@cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server@latest"]
}
}
```
## Documentation & README
@cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server
Query WHO Global Health Observatory data — 3,059 indicators across 194 member states with country, region, year, and sex filters via MCP. STDIO or Streamable HTTP.
6 Tools • 2 Resources
[](./CHANGELOG.md) [](./LICENSE) [](https://github.com/users/cyanheads/packages/container/package/who-gho-mcp-server) [](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) [](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server) [](https://www.typescriptlang.org/) [](https://bun.sh/)
[](https://github.com/cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server/releases/latest/download/who-gho-mcp-server.mcpb) [](https://cursor.com/en/install-mcp?name=who-gho-mcp-server&config=eyJjb21tYW5kIjoibnB4IiwiYXJncyI6WyIteSIsIkBjeWFuaGVhZHMvd2hvLWdoby1tY3Atc2VydmVyIl19) [](https://vscode.dev/redirect?url=vscode:mcp/install?%7B%22name%22%3A%22who-gho-mcp-server%22%2C%22command%22%3A%22npx%22%2C%22args%22%3A%5B%22-y%22%2C%22%40cyanheads%2Fwho-gho-mcp-server%22%5D%7D)
[](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@cyanheads/mcp-ts-core)
**Public Hosted Server:** [https://who-gho.caseyjhand.com/mcp](https://who-gho.caseyjhand.com/mcp)
---
## Tools
6 tools for working with WHO Global Health Observatory data:
| Tool | Description |
|:---|:---|
| `who_search_indicators` | Search the GHO indicator catalog by keyword in indicator names |
| `who_list_indicators` | Browse the full indicator catalog with pagination |
| `who_get_indicator_metadata` | Fetch indicator names and supported filter dimensions for up to 10 codes |
| `who_list_dimensions` | List all dimension type codes available in the GHO API |
| `who_list_dimension_values` | List valid codes and labels for a dimension type (COUNTRY, REGION, SEX, etc.) |
| `who_query_indicator_data` | Query data rows for an indicator with spatial, temporal, and dimension filters |
### `who_search_indicators`
Search the WHO GHO indicator catalog by keyword.
- Substring match on indicator names — try terms like `"life expectancy"`, `"immunization"`, `"mortality"`, `"diabetes"`, or `"HIV"`
- Returns indicator codes and display names for use with `who_query_indicator_data`
- Offset-based pagination (`offset`) over the filtered result set; reports `totalCount`, `hasMore`, `pageInfo`, `nextOffset`
- Default limit 20, max 100
---
### `who_list_indicators`
Browse the full indicator catalog with offset-based pagination.
- No keyword required — lists all 3,059+ indicators
- Pagination via `limit` (default 50, max 500) and `offset`
- Returns `total` and `hasMore` for iteration
---
### `who_get_indicator_metadata`
Fetch metadata for one to ten indicator codes in a single call.
- Returns the full indicator name and the dimension types it supports (e.g. `COUNTRY`, `SEX`, `REGION`, `AGEGROUP`)
- Call before `who_query_indicator_data` to confirm which filter dimensions are valid
- Roughly 1,300 catalog indicators have no dimension listing upstream — those return `dimensions: []` plus a `dimensionsNote` pointing at `dim1Type`/`dim2Type` on a sample data row, not a not-found
- Codes absent from the catalog are reported in `notFound` rather than raising an error
---
### `who_list_dimensions`
List all dimension type codes available in the GHO API.
- Returns every dimension type with its human-readable title
- Common types: `COUNTRY`, `REGION`, `SEX`, `WORLDBANKINCOMEGROUP`, `AGEGROUP`
- Use to discover codes before calling `who_list_dimension_values`
---
### `who_list_dimension_values`
List valid filter values for a single dimension type.
- Returns codes and labels for the dimension's values (e.g. the 234 country entries, the 43 WHO region codes)
- Includes optional parent hierarchy fields (`parentCode`, `parentLabel`, `parentDimension`)
- `parent_code` narrows hierarchical dimensions — `dimension: "COUNTRY"`, `parent_code: "EUR"` returns the 58 country entries in the WHO European Region
- Deterministic ordering by `Code` with offset-based pagination (`offset`); returns `totalCount`, `hasMore`, `pageInfo`, `nextOffset`
- Default limit 100, max 500 — `GHO` (3,103 values) and `DHSMICSGEOREGION` (4,932) need paging
- A `parent_code` that matches nothing returns an empty page, not an error; only an unfiltered empty result means the dimension does not exist
- Use to confirm exact codes before passing them to `who_query_indicator_data`
---
### `who_query_indicator_data`
Query data rows for a single WHO GHO indicator.
- Spatial filters (mutually exclusive): `country_codes` (ISO 3166-1 alpha-3), `region_codes` (WHO regions), or `income_group_codes` (World Bank groups)
- Time range filter: `year_from` / `year_to`
- Sex filter: `SEX_BTSX` (both), `SEX_FMLE`, `SEX_MLE` — only applies when the indicator uses SEX as its first cross-cutting dimension
- Arbitrary `dim1_value` for indicators using non-SEX cross-cutting dimensions
- Optional uncertainty interval bounds (`low`/`high`) via `include_uncertainty` (default true)
- Deterministic row ordering (`sort`: `year_desc` default or `year_asc`) with offset-based pagination (`offset`); returns `totalRows`, `hasMore`, `pageInfo`, `nextOffset`
- Default limit 200, max 1000
- Primary data tool in the find-then-query workflow
## Resources
| Type | URI | Description |
|:---|:---|:---|
| Resource | `who://indicator/{indicatorCode}/metadata` | Indicator name and supported filter dimensions for a single code |
| Resource | `who://dimension/{dimensionCode}/values` | First 100 values for a dimension type |
| Resource | `who://dimension/{dimensionCode}/values{?limit,offset}` | One explicit page of a dimension type's values |
| Resource | `who://dimension/{dimensionCode}/values{?limit,offset,parentCode}` | One explicit page, narrowed to a parent code |
The three dimension-value URIs are registered separately because the MCP SDK's RFC 6570 matcher treats every query variable as required — a single template with optional variables would stop matching the bare URI. Supply every variable a template names.
## Recommended workflow
1. `who_search_indicators` — find indicator codes by keyword
2. `who_get_indicator_metadata` — confirm which filter dimensions the indicator supports
3. `who_query_indicator_data` — fetch data with country/region/year/sex filters
To look up filter codes: `who_list_dimensions` → `who_list_dimension_values`.
## Features
Built on [`@cyanheads/mcp-ts-core`](https://github.com/cyanheads/mcp-ts-core):
- Declarative tool definitions — single file per tool, framework handles registration and validation
- Unified error handling across all tools
- Pluggable auth (`none`, `jwt`, `oauth`)
- Swappable storage backends: `in-memory`, `filesystem`, `Supabase`, `Cloudflare KV/R2/D1`
- Structured logging with optional OpenTelemetry tracing
- Runs locally (stdio/HTTP) or on Cloudflare Workers from the same codebase
WHO GHO-specific:
- Full coverage of the [WHO GHO OData API v2](https://www.who.int/data/gho/info/gho-odata-api) — indicators, dimensions, dimension values, and data queries
- Configurable base URL and request timeout for custom or mirrored deployments
- Parallel metadata fan-out for multi-code indicator lookups
Agent-friendly output:
- Tool descriptions encode the cross-tool workflow — agents discover the right call order from descriptions alone
- Structured truncation signaling (`truncated`, `truncatedNote`, `hasMore`) so agents can decide whether to paginate
- Discriminated error codes with `recovery` hints on every failure path
## Getting started
### Self-Hosted / Local
Add the following to your MCP client configuration file.
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"who-gho-mcp-server": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "bunx",
"args": ["@cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server@latest"],
"env": {
"MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE": "stdio",
"MCP_LOG_LEVEL": "info"
}
}
}
}
```
Or with npx (no Bun required):
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"who-gho-mcp-server": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server@latest"],
"env": {
"MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE": "stdio",
"MCP_LOG_LEVEL": "info"
}
}
}
}
```
Or with Docker:
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"who-gho-mcp-server": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "docker",
"args": ["run", "-i", "--rm", "-e", "MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE=stdio", "ghcr.io/cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server:latest"]
}
}
}
```
For Streamable HTTP, set the transport and start the server:
```sh
MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE=http MCP_HTTP_PORT=3010 bun run start:http
# Server listens at http://localhost:3010/mcp
```
### Prerequisites
- [Bun v1.3.0](https://bun.sh/) or higher (or Node.js ≥24).
- No API key required — the WHO GHO API is public.
### Installation
1. **Clone the repository:**
```sh
git clone https://github.com/cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server.git
```
2. **Navigate into the directory:**
```sh
cd who-gho-mcp-server
```
3. **Install dependencies:**
```sh
bun install
```
## Configuration
All configuration is validated at startup via Zod schemas in `src/config/server-config.ts`. Key environment variables:
| Variable | Description | Default |
|:---|:---|:---|
| `MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE` | Transport: `stdio` or `http` | `stdio` |
| `MCP_HTTP_PORT` | HTTP server port | `3010` |
| `MCP_HTTP_ENDPOINT_PATH` | HTTP endpoint path where the MCP server is mounted | `/mcp` |
| `MCP_PUBLIC_URL` | Public origin override for TLS-terminating reverse-proxy deployments | none |
| `MCP_AUTH_MODE` | Authentication: `none`, `jwt`, or `oauth` | `none` |
| `MCP_LOG_LEVEL` | Log level (`debug`, `info`, `warning`, `error`, etc.) | `info` |
| `MCP_GC_PRESSURE_INTERVAL_MS` | Opt-in Bun-only forced-GC pressure loop (ms). Try `60000` if RSS grows under sustained HTTP load. | `0` (disabled) |
| `LOGS_DIR` | Directory for log files (Node.js only) | `/logs` |
| `STORAGE_PROVIDER_TYPE` | Storage backend: `in-memory`, `filesystem`, `supabase`, `cloudflare-kv/r2/d1` | `in-memory` |
| `GHO_BASE_URL` | WHO GHO OData API base URL (override for custom/mirrored deployments) | `https://ghoapi.azureedge.net/api/` |
| `GHO_REQUEST_TIMEOUT_MS` | HTTP request timeout in milliseconds | `30000` |
| `OTEL_ENABLED` | Enable OpenTelemetry | `false` |
## Running the server
### Local development
- **Build and run the production version**:
```sh
# One-time build
bun run rebuild
# Run the built server
bun run start:http
# or
bun run start:stdio
```
- **Run checks and tests**:
```sh
bun run devcheck # Lints, formats, type-checks, and more
bun run test # Runs the test suite
```
## Project structure
| Directory | Purpose |
|:---|:---|
| `src/mcp-server/tools` | Tool definitions (`*.tool.ts`). Six tools across indicator discovery, dimension lookup, and data queries. |
| `src/mcp-server/resources` | Resource definitions. Indicator metadata and dimension values resources. |
| `src/services/gho` | WHO GHO OData API service layer — HTTP client, query builder, types. |
| `src/config` | Server-specific environment variable parsing and validation with Zod. |
| `tests/` | Unit and integration tests, mirroring the `src/` structure. |
## Development guide
See [`CLAUDE.md`](https://github.com/cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server/blob/HEAD/CLAUDE.md) for development guidelines and architectural rules. The short version:
- Handlers throw, framework catches — no `try/catch` in tool logic
- Use `ctx.log` for logging, `ctx.state` for storage
- Register new tools and resources in the `createApp()` arrays
## Contributing
Issues and pull requests are welcome. Run checks and tests before submitting:
```sh
bun run devcheck
bun run test
```
## License
This project is licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. See the [LICENSE](https://github.com/cyanheads/who-gho-mcp-server/blob/HEAD/LICENSE) file for details.