(ANSA) - GENEVA, OCTOBER 29 - Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director of the World Health Organization, is the only candidate to lead the WHO once his current mandate has expired, as announced today by the same organization of the UN. In his candidacy letter, the former Ethiopian Health and Foreign Minister said that Covid-19 "has shocked the world" and in his second term he wants to make sure the planet is "really ready" to face another crisis of this kind.
Elected to lead WHO in 2017, Tedros will see his mandate expire in August. "A single candidate has been proposed by member states by the deadline of 23 September 2021: Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus", WHO reported in a statement, specifying that the current director general has been appointed by 28 nations.
17 European Union countries gave their support to Tedros, and among them Germany and Spain declared that the strengthening of the WHO in the wake of the pandemic "must continue with a full and complete commitment", adding that the organization has need for "strong, pragmatic and visionary leadership".
Outside the EU, Tedros was proposed by Bahrain, Barbados, Botswana, Cook Islands, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Oman, Rwanda, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago.
Indonesia argued that the world still needs to overcome the pandemic "and needs uninterrupted leadership within the WHO", while Kenya, Oman and Rwanda have expressed deep conviction that Tedros "is in the ideal position to continue in the role".
(HANDLE).