WHO SEARO Leadership: Politics Should Not Trump People’s Health

In early November this year, the Regional Committee of the World Health Organization (WHO) South East Asia Regional Office (SEARO) will meet in New Delhi to nominate its next Regional Director. The choice of candidate for this critical post will be based on voting behind closed doors by the organisation’s eleven member countries, prominent among these being India, Indonesia, Thailand and Bangladesh. 

Now, why should anyone really care who becomes the next Regional Director of WHO SEARO, which is one out of the six WHO Regions around the globe?

To begin with, the decision will have major implications for health policies across the South East Asia Region, home to a quarter of the world’s population. Apart from bearing 30 percent of the global disease burden, SEARO also accounts for the highest proportion of global mortality (26%) due to the triple menace of infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases and injuries. 

Nearly one-third of the world’s child deaths occur in the region, while the average neonatal and infant mortality rates are also higher than the global averages. Again, more than one-fifth of the world’s adult mortality burden was due to communicable diseases occurring in the region.

In other words, failure to choose a competent and experienced candidate for the WHO’s regional office will mean gambling with the fate of millions of lives in the region. 

The two candidates in the race to become the next Regional Director of WHO SEARO are Shambhu Acharya from Nepal, a public health specialist with outstanding technical and public health credentials, and Saima Wazed from Bangladesh, who happens to be Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s daughter and is trained in child psychology. Sections of public health experts are concerned that Wazed lacks technical, public health, and administrative experience required to serve as the regional director.   

There are three main reasons for concern:

• The WHO SEARO is expected to steer public health responses at the regional level. A poorly qualified candidate appointed as regional director could bring reputational risk for the WHO and real-world risk for all countries in the region in the event of any health emergency that might emerge in any of the SEARO countries.
• The appointment of the daughter of a prime minister to a top administrative position through “a political push” would be unprecedented in the UN system.
• Under an unwritten code of conduct, top WHO officials are expected to be country-neutral. As UN employees, they are intended to work for the global interest. There are apprehensions whether Wazed will be able to “distance” herself from Bangladesh’s foreign policy and domestic politics.

Many in the global health community are currently alarmed at how Bangladesh and Saima Wazed herself are lobbying intensely for her to be elected. India too appears to be leaning towards supporting her candidature, mainly for geopolitical reasons. If this is true, the Government of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi supporting PM Hasina’s daughter for a sensitive position while decrying dynastic politics at home will clearly be a double standard.

In the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, which resulted in devastating loss of life and economic repercussions, a high-level committee was established to assess and ready the WHO for its intended role. The committee stressed the importance of competency and objectives, rather than political considerations, in the appointment of Regional Directors. In its view, an open selection process that appoints candidates based on a blend of technical expertise, managerial aptitude, and political acumen, to prioritise collective health over short-term national interests, should be the primary goals of the member states for its own advantages.

It also stressed the urgent need to curb the political manoeuvring that has characterized past elections and ensuring the appointment of the most suitable candidates for these increasingly pivotal roles.

In the upcoming election, it will be critical for the WHO SEARO’s member countries to choose and prioritise individuals based on merit of the candidates and also learn lessons from the dire experience of the Covid-19 pandemic and further strengthen the ability of the region to respond effectively to many health challenges facing the region. Choosing the right candidate for the WHO’s regional top job is also important to ensure that the organization fulfils its own mandate with both integrity and competence.

The author is the former United Nations World Food Programme Representative, India, Yemen & Egypt.