The Director-General of Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu has been appointed by the World Health Organisation as the new Assistant Director-General of Health Emergency Intelligence.
This was disclosed in a statement by WHO Chief, Tedros Ghebreyesus on Wednesday morning as Ihekweazu is expected to resume his role on the 1st of November.
“I am pleased to welcome Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu as an Assistant Director-General for Health Emergency Intelligence from November 1, 2021.
“He will lead the work on strengthening pandemic and epidemic intelligence globally, including heading the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence in Berlin,” Ghebreyesus said.
WHO added that the Nigerian will be in charge of strengthening pandemic and epidemic intelligence globally, including heading the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence in Berlin.
WHO also added that Ihekweazu is a trained infectious disease epidemiologist, and has over 20 years of experience working in senior public health and leadership positions in several National Public Health Institutes, including the South African National Institute for Communicable Diseases, the United Kingdom’s Health Protection Agency, and Germany’s Robert Koch Institute.
The news of his appointment was met with praise on Social Media as former CBN assistant Governor and Presidential candidate, Kingsley Moghalu said “It’s a very well deserved appointment, proud of Chikwe, who handled Nigeria’s Covid response brilliantly.”
