By Emma Farge, Olivia Le Poidevin and Stanley Widianto
GENEVA, Oct 6 (Reuters) – China plans to put forward a late candidate to lead the World Health Organization, according to four diplomats and a source familiar with the matter, giving Beijing a chance to expand its influence after the US quit the WHO.
Beijing has long sought to take on more responsibility within UN agencies and other multilateral bodies, just as the United States under President Donald Trump winds down its engagement with the UN and some of its constituent organisations.
The WHO leads international efforts to combat disease and health crises such as the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the recent COVID-19 pandemic.
The sources said China plans to put forward Song Li, a senior public health official with 20 years’ expertise in maternal and child health policy and international cooperation, to succeed the incumbent director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Song and the Chinese mission in Geneva did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
A diplomatic source said the planned nomination was a clear sign that China wanted to fill a void where the US has stepped back.
The UN health agency has been forced into a sweeping restructuring by the loss of its largest donor, scaling back activities, cutting senior management roles and eliminating thousands of jobs.
Trump’s administration repeatedly criticised the WHO’s handling of the pandemic and accused it of bias toward China, the place where COVID-19 originated – something the WHO rejects.
China has announced additional funding for the WHO but is far from filling the gap left by the United States.
The WHO will release the complete list of nominees after final regional committee meetings, expected in early November.
However, six candidates, representing Saudi Arabia, Belgium, Qatar, Botswana, Indonesia and Spain, have already chosen to make their identities public on the WHO’s website.
Song could face scrutiny amid lingering tensions over the WHO’s relationship with China during the pandemic.
In 2020, she was editor-in-chief of a paper giving guidance on COVID-19 prevention and control for women in China to set national standards for managing maternal and child health during the pandemic.
If chosen, she would be the second Chinese national to head the WHO after Margaret Chan.
(Reporting by Emma Farge and Olivia Le Poidevin in Geneva, Stanley Widianto in Jakarta; additional reporting by Farah Master; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
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