Saima Wazed nominated to lead WHO South-East Asia Region

Saima Wazed has been nominated as the next World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for South-East Asia, according to the UN health body.  Bangladesh, Bhutan, North Korea, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Timor-Leste are member states of WHO South-East Asia Region.

Member states voted to nominate Saima Wazed during a closed meeting at the Seventy-sixth session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia Region, the WHO said in a statement on Wednesday.

The nomination will be submitted to the WHO Executive Board during its 154th session, taking place on 22−27 January 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland.

The newly appointed Regional Director will take office on 1 February 2024.

Saima Wazed is the Chairperson of Bangladesh’s National Advisory Committee on Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Autism; an advisor to WHO’s Director General on Mental Health and Autism; and a member of the WHO’s Expert Advisory Panel on Mental Health.