World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus gestures during a news conference in Beirut, Lebanon September 17, 2021. REUTERS Mohamed Azakir Photo File
GENEVA BERLIN, September 22 Reuters - Germany is seeking support from other European Union members to ensure a second term for Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the helm of the World Health Organisation, but African states have yet to show their cards, government sources and diplomats said on Wednesday.
The deadline for proposing candidates is Thursday with 1600 GMT and no other candidate for the election in May has been announced, they said.
Tedros, elected in May 2017 as WHO's first African Director-General, has been shunned this time by his native Ethiopia due to friction over the Tigray conflict.
On Tuesday, the Ethiopian Health Minister called for a second term for Tantara and told all countries to support the former minister of health and foreign affairs from the German region. Government sources on Wednesday made Reuters clear to Reuters that it is now an official nomination.
Right now an effort is going on, led by Germany, looking for other member states to join this host country in nominating him, a Western diplomat said. Germany won't be alone. Tedros, who has been the international face of the fight against the COVID 19 pandemic, has trodden a fine line while managing to anger both China and the United States at different times.
The Trump administration accused him of being China-centric a charge he denies. However relations have improved since President Tedros took over the presidency and Joe Biden in July said that a second phase of study of the origins of coronavirus in China were needed, including audit of laboratories.
One African diplomat at the African Union said that the appointment of the WTO head was not discussed among member countries a day ahead of the deadline.
An African ambassador in Addis Ababa said that he was not aware of any member of the African Union planning an alternative candidate. Most regional countries are keen to see him stay in the job, where he has promoted their access to COVID-19 vaccines and the start of vaccine production on the continent, he said.
A senior African diplomat based in Geneva said that he did not expect any country of the African group to nominate Tedros as he did not enjoy Ethiopia's backing.
Nevertheless, the African countries are expected to support Tedros' re-election, and the senior diplomat was not aware of any other candidates from Africa or from another region.
As a national group it is always difficult when the home country doesn't support its own regional policy. It is complex to take the initiative of another African country other than his country of origin, he told Reuters.