(Endorsement) — Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim, Former Prime Minister of Tanzania and the Former Secretary General of the Organisation of African Unity Calls on WHO Member States to Vote for Dr Tedros for WHO Director General
THE OFFICE OF DR SALIM AHMED SALIM — FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA FORMER SECRETARY GENERAL OF ORGANISATION OF AFRICAN UNITY
Ref: SAS/GEN.05/08/17 Date: 08 May 2017
Letter of Support for Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus Candidate for Director General of the World Health Organization
Dear Member States,
This May, the World Health Assembly will elect a new Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO). This person will lead WHO’s efforts to sustain global progress on infectious diseases and advance maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health; com bat emerging health challenges, including non-communicable diseases and the health effects of climate change; tum universal health coverage from a promise into a reality; and ensure the world is prepared to tackle the next health emergency, whenever and wherever it may arise.
I am confident that Dr Tedros is eminently qualified and suited for the role of WHO Director General. I am proud to join the African Union in endorsing his candidacy.
Dr. Tedros has the experience, the skills and the passion needed to transform WHO into the transparent, results-based organization that the world needs and deserves.
What sets Dr. Tedros apart from the other candidates is his hands-on experience expanding access to health care in low-resource settings. He has an unparalleled understanding of the challenges that developing countries face and creative ways of overcoming them. During his seven years as Ethiopia’s Minister of Health, Dr. Tedros transformed Ethiopia’s health system; he invested in critical infrastructure, expanded the health work force, strengthened health information systems, and laid the groundwork for a health insurance scheme for people in the formal and informal sectors. Together, these investments had a significant impact on health in Ethiopia and helped the country achieve nearly all the Millennium Development Goals. At a time when the world is focused on achieving the ambitious goals of universal health coverage and emergency preparedness, we need a Director-General who knows what it takes to build strong, resilient health systems, even — and especially — under challenging circumstances.
Beyond his public health know-how, Dr. Tedros is also a skilled diplomat and an impressive consensus builder. He is the only candidate to have served not only as Minister of Health, but also Minister of Foreign Affairs, and he has a proven ability to bring people together around common goals and drive collective action. For example, in 2015, he led negotiations for the landmark Addis Ababa Action Agenda, a historic plan to finance the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. As Board Chair of both the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria and Roll Back Malaria, Dr. Tedros led fundraising campaigns that brought in record-breaking contributions for both organizations.
Finally, Dr. Tedros’ leadership style is precisely what we need at the helm of WHO. He is a receptive listener, always open to hearing the ideas of others, but he is also decisive and able to make quick and smart decisions under pressure. He is known for his ability to identify talent and bring out the best in his staff, which will ultimately make WHO a more efficient and effective organization and drive bigger and more sustainable health gains around the world.
Should he be elected, Dr. Tedros will be one of the most qualified candidates for this important post — and we have a chance to make history by electing him. In its almost 70-year history, the WHO has never had a Director-General from Africa, the region hardest hit by so many of the world’s most pressing health challenges. Now is the time to change that.
I hope you will join me in supporting Dr. Tedros for WHO Director-General this May. I believe that WHO and the world at large will benefit immensely from his leadership.
Thank you,
Salim Ahmed Salim
5 Vatch Club Street, Msasani Peninsula, P.O Box 7526, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.
You can read more about Dr. Tedros and his vision for a healthy world as #NextDG at his website: http://www.drtedros.com/ — and follow along with his campaign on social media at Facebook.com/DrTedros.Official and on Twitter at @DrTedros. Sign up for the campaign’s newsletter `From the Desk of Dr. Tedros’ at http://bit.ly/2nGWtLm.
