Bangladesh PM's daughter to head WHO's South-East Asia region
Saima Wazed of Bangladesh has been elected as the next World Health Organisation (WHO) regional director for South-East Asia, which comprises 11 member countries.
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| Saima Wazed of Bangladesh has been elected as the next World Health Organisation (WHO) regional director for South-East Asia. |
The Regional Committee of WHO South-East Asia voted to nominate the next regional director in a closed meeting during its 76th session in New Delhi, India on November 1.
Saima Wazed, Bangladesh’s candidate and daughter of the country’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, was nominated as the World Health Organisation’s regional director for South-East Asia on Wednesday. She won against Nepal’s candidate, Dr Shambhu Acharya, who has been working in the WHO director-general’s office since 2013.
Saima Wazed wrote on X, formerly Twitter, "I would like to pay tribute to our outgoing RD, Dr. Poonam Khetrapal Singh, for her decade of service to the public health of our region.
"A special tribute as well for my fellow nominee in this race, Dr. Acharya. In his long & distinguished career, he has been an invaluable asset to @WHO - and I hope our region will continue to benefit from his knowledge & experience.
"I look forward to building a healthier South-East Asia."
Wazed, a psychologist by training, has been working extensively in the field of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. She has been the chairperson of Bangladesh’s National Advisory Committee on Neurodevelopmental Disorders since 2012. She has also been working as a technical expert on autism and mental health disorder at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Hospital since 2022. She is also the chairperson of the Shuchona Foundation, which is engaged in advocacy, research and capacity building for disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders and mental health.
Her nomination will be submitted to the WHO Executive Board during its 154th session in January 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland and the newly appointed Regional Director will take office on 1 February 2024.
She will succeed India’s Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, who was the first woman to hold the office and remained in the position for two five-year terms.
