Qatar elected as President of WHO Executive Board

Doha, The Gulf Observer: The Executive Board of the World Health Organization (WHO) yesterday elected the State of Qatar as President of the Board at its 153rd session for a period of one year.

The election is an acknowledgement by the Member States of the leading role played by the State of Qatar at the international level, and its strong support for the World Health Organization in performing its mission of promoting health and wellness for all.

The State of Qatar participated in the meetings of the World Health Assembly, which started in Geneva on May 21 and concluded on Tuesday, May 30. During the World Health Assembly meetings, the Qatari delegation headed by Her Excellency Dr. Hanan Muhammad al-Kuwari, Minister of Public Health, was elected to membership in the Executive Board of the World Health Organization as a representative of the Eastern Mediterranean Region for three years.

Minister of Public Health HE Dr. Hanan Mohammed Al Kuwari expressed the State of Qatar’s appreciation to the Member States for the confidence they had shown in electing the State of Qatar Chair of the Executive Board, and confirmed to work closely with the Member States and the WHO’s governing bodies to implement the goals of the World Health Organization and achieve universal health coverage.

The meetings of the Executive Board of the World Health Organization began yesterday in its 153rd session, which is for held two days, in Geneva, Switzerland, chaired by Her Excellency Dr. Hanan Mohammed Al-Kuwari, Minister of Public Health. The meetings of the Board discuss a number of important topics, most notably the outcome of the meetings of the Seventy-sixth World Health Assembly, the Committee’s report on health emergency prevention, preparedness and response, in addition to topics related to the fourth pillar of the World Health Organization regarding the enhancement of the organization’s efficiency and effectiveness in providing countries with better support and improving the budgetary, programmatic and finance governance of WHO.

The main functions of the Board are to implement the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, and advise and generally to facilitate its work. The Board is composed of 34 members who are technically qualified in the field of health, and they meet at least twice a year.