The World Health Organization on Tuesday elected Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, former minister of health for Ethiopia, as its next director general. He is the first African appointed to head the global health agency.
Dr. Tedros — as he is known, going by his first name — will replace WHO Director General Margaret Chan on July 1. Ms. Chan held the post since November 2006.
A 133-50 vote secured Dr. Tedros' appointment. He will serve a five-year term.
This election was different than years past. For the first time, member states participated in a ballot process in which each member cast an equal vote. Previously, director generals were chosen by an executive board, and voting took place behind closed doors.
Dr. Tedro defeated David Nabarro, MD, a physician and longtime United Nations adviser from Britain, in the second round of voting.
Dr. Tedros served as Ethiopia's minister of health from 2005 to 2012, during which he rolled out an integrated program for health delivery that deployed community-based health extension workers in communities. This model nearly doubled the country's health workforce in a matter of years. He then served as Ethiopia's foreign minister for four years.
Dr. Tedros has earned recognition for his pioneering work research on malaria in Ethiopia. In 2011, he became the first non-American to receive the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Humanitarian Award. He holds a doctorate in community health and a master of science in immunology of infectious diseases.
"While WHO has never had a director from Africa, no one should elect me because I am from Africa," Dr. Tedro said, according to The Washington Post. At the same time, the Ethiopian public health authority was seen by others as a strong contender in the election given the number and severity of epidemics and illnesses affecting Africans.
WHO came under fire for its response to the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Ms. Chan and top leaders admitted to being "ill prepared" to handle the large and sustained disease outbreak. In 2016, the agency released a list of its lessons learned and suggested reforms.