[Exclusive]: Q&A With Hanan Balkhy, WHO DG Candidate

Readers,

We are presenting voices from the prospective candidates in the race to become the next Director-General to lead the World Health Organization.

As we shared last week, we sent nearly a dozen questions to all the candidates, and have requested them to respond in writing, sharing their visions, hopes and ambition for the WHO. Not all would speak to us. We bring you what we see.

These questions were framed and shaped by this community of highly engaged and sophisticated readers, that constitute our audience. The questions touch on areas including priorities for the WHO, measures on safeguarding science, governance, financing, tackling donors, streamlining operations, standing up to bullies (or not), parsing through political fights, and the likes.

Presenting the second of these series: a comprehensive interview with Hanan Balkhy, nominated by Saudi Arabia. Balkhy is a physician, WHO-insider with deep expertise among others, with stripes earned in conflict settings. This is a comprehensive interview, do read.

We hope these interviews help our readership understand not only how candidates are evaluating the role to lead the WHO, but to also understand how they assess the terrain they will govern, if elected. This is revealing, and goes beyond public statements that they have shared. (These are verbatim, we have not changed a word. See the first one here with Gevorg Tamamyan.)

We are grateful to the candidates for their time and willingness to share this with us. This is an important high-stakes election that deserves public engagement. (Our requests to candidates in the just concluded Global Fund race, went unanswered, and not acknowledged.)

In case you missed it, read a detailed guest essay published earlier, on what it would take to lead the WHO.

This is an exciting time to be reporting on global health in Geneva, but also resource intensive. Support us? You won't be disappointed. For we share not only information, but insights that frame the information. Reader-funded journalism brings greater scrutiny to this election. Join the community.

I. THE FILES SERIES

Art work by Julia Dötzer, Geneva Health Files

EXCLUSIVE: Q&A With Hanan Balkhy, WHO DG Candidate

Introductory question: your specific experience so far that would help WHO

I know WHO from three perspectives: a country seeking its expertise, a headquarters executive shaping its work and a Regional Director accountable for delivery. Before joining WHO, I worked with the Organization as a national leader and partner, sometimes as a critic. I understand what countries expect and what must change within WHO to meet those expectations.

My preparation began at the bedside as a paediatric infectious disease physician. In Saudi Arabia, I built infection prevention and public health programmes and research capacity in antimicrobial resistance and emerging pathogens. That experience taught me to translate evidence into institutions, develop teams and bring clinicians, researchers and government together around shared health priorities.

At headquarters, I established and led WHO’s Antimicrobial Resistance Division as its first Assistant Director-General and advanced One Health cooperation. During COVID-19, I led WHO’s contribution to the ACT-Accelerator Diagnostics Pillar. Later, as acting Assistant Director-General for Access to Medicines and Health Products, I led work spanning regulation, supply chains, manufacturing and equitable access.

As Regional Director, I built our Strategic Operational Plan and three flagship initiatives around Member States’ priorities. I have visited 21 of the Region’s 22 countries and territories, many more than once. We established 115 funded long-term country-office priority posts, directed more than 90% of available regional funding to country offices in 2024-2025, and strengthened controls and performance management. These are collective achievements; my responsibility has been to set direction, enable delivery and address gaps.

This combination prepares me to connect independent science with country action and responsible stewardship. I bring experience of building institutions, leading through simultaneous emergencies and making difficult decisions about people and resources. I ask to be judged by whether WHO’s work improves health and leaves countries with stronger capabilities.