WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus re-elected

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (centre) receives congratulations after being re-elected on May 24 – Photo: REUTERS

“I’m really overwhelmed by the support. This recognition is not just for me. I believe this recognition is for the entire WHO family,” Tedros said after the vote on May 24.

The WHO did not disclose the specific number of votes and only said that Tedros received more than two-thirds of the vote. Meanwhile, AFP news agency, citing some sources, revealed that Tedros received 155 votes out of 160 votes. Mr. Tedros was the only candidate in the vote.

After the results were announced, ministers and delegates from many countries shook hands and hugged WHO Director General.

Tedros served as Ethiopia’s health minister before becoming the WHO’s first black leader in 2017.

Mr. Tedros has become a familiar face since the global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has led the global response to the spread of the disease, which is still a hot issue in the world.

His first term was also fraught with turbulence with sex scandals involving WHO staff in the Democratic Republic of Congo or former US President Donald Trump’s withdrawal of Washington from WHO.

A “son of war” raised in Ethiopia, Tedros recently warned about the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on global health.

“A divided world cannot handle the mountain of emergencies and health challenges we face, including the COVID-19 crisis and emerging pandemic threats. “, he said at the WHO meeting last weekend. He added that peace “is a prerequisite for health”.