The World Fellowship of Buddhists (WFB) is an international Buddhist organization. Initiated by Gunapala Piyasena Malalasekera, it was founded in 1950 in Colombo, Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka), by representatives from 27 nations. Although Theravada Buddhists are prominent in the organization, (its headquarters are in Thailand and all of its presidents have been from Sri Lanka or southeast Asia), members of all Buddhist schools are active in the WFB. It has regional centers in more than 30 countries, including India, the United States, Australia, and several nations of Africa and Europe, in addition to traditional Buddhist countries. The aims and objectives of the World Fellowship of Buddhists are: The current president is Phan Wannamethee of Thailand serving since 1999, while Venerable Hsing Yun of the Republic of China (Taiwan) served as honorary president.

Affiliates

Australia

Austria

Bangladesh

Belgium

Bhutan

Brazil

Burma (see Myanmar)

Cambodia

Canada

China

Czechoslovakia

Finland

France

Germany

Ghana

Great Britain

Hong Kong

India

Indonesia

Japan

South Korea

North Korea

Laos

Malaysia

Mongolia

Myanmar

Nepal

Netherlands

Philippines

Singapore

Sri Lanka

Sweden

Taiwan

Tanzania

Thailand

United States

USSR

Vietnam