Outgoing WHO chief honoured

Islamabad

Dr. Michel Thieren, who completes his tenure in Pakistan as country head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) was honoured at a special ceremony arranged by the Ministry of National Health Services here Monday. The ceremony was participated by high-ranking officials and heads of international agencies based in Pakistan.

Paying glowing tributes to the services of Dr. Michel during his tenure from May 2014 to January 2017, Secretary Health Muhammad Ayub Shaikh said Dr. Thieren’s public health knowledge and wide experience of working in different countries including conflict zones and areas ridden with crisis brought great value to his work in Pakistan presenting diverse challenges. “Dr. Thieren stood firmly by us in 2014 as we faced the dual challenge posed by the risk of Ebola virus entering our borders and the seemingly uncontrollable spike in Polio cases,” he said.

Upon completion of his tenure in Pakistan, Dr. Thieren has been given the key responsibility of Director WHO Emergency Operations at WHO Regional Office in Cairo. Speaking on the occasion, he said, things are definitely on the right track in Pakistan. Mothers and children are no longer dying every day by hundreds like before. A whole health systemic conscience has emerged. For any child born today, there is more hope for them to be well educated, and to live healthier than ever before.

Lauding Pakistan’s progress in polio eradication, Dr. Thieren said the national polio programme is the quintessence of the transformation Pakistan’s health sector is going through: an eminently complex endeavour that cuts across so many disciplines, and that has been able to transcend any party, political, administrative, constitutional and geographical divide.

In the end, the Secretary Health presented a shield to Dr. Thieren in recognition of his outstanding services to the country.