Half a dozen candidates vie for top WHO job, including Ethiopia’s foreign minister

Agency Staff  | September 23 2016 | Business Day

GENEVA — Six candidates are in the running to take over the helm of the World Health Organisation (WHO), including Ethiopia’s foreign minister, who is bidding to be the first African to hold the position, the UN agency said Friday.

The WHO’s 194 member states had until the end of the day on Thursday to propose candidates to replace director-general Margaret Chan, who will step down next June after 11 years in the role.

The list of people to replace her includes Ethiopian foreign minister Tedros Adhanom, who enjoys the unanimous backing of the African Union.

The renowned malaria researcher and former health minister from 2005-2012 was among the first to throw his name in the hat, but he will face competition from rivals proposed by France, Italy, Pakistan, the UK and Hungary.

The WHO is a vast UN agency with an annual budget of $4.4bn, and is responsible for co-ordinating responses to global emergencies and raising awareness about health issues from pollution to tropical diseases.

It was heavily criticised for its slow response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, which has killed more than 11,000 people since late 2013. Chan has admitted mistakes were made. France has proposed former health minister Philippe Douste-Blazy to replace her, while Pakistan has thrown its weight behind former health minister Sania Nishtar — one of only two women on the list.

The other woman is Flavia Bustreo, who was proposed by Italy and who is currently serving as the WHO’s assistant director-general for family, women’s and children’s health.

Another insider is David Nabarro, who among other things, organised the UN’s response to the Ebola epidemic in 2014, and who was proposed by the UK.

Hungary has put forward former health minister Miklos Szocska.

The WHO said a shortlist of three would be presented in May 2017 at the agency’s annual World Health Assembly, which will make the final appointment.

The new director-general will take the helm of the organisation on July 1 2017.