Starting in 2024, Korea will sit on the World Health Organization (WHO) Executive Board to co-initiate international health strategies and responses to global health issues.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Friday that Korea was nominated as one of the two countries to serve on the WHO Executive Board for a term beginning in May 2024 at the 74th WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific in Manila from Oct. 16 to 20.
When one of the five WHO Executive Board seats assigned to the Western Pacific region expires, the Regional Committee nominates the next WHO Executive Board member, confirmed by the World Health Assembly in May of the following year.
The WHO Executive Board consists of 34 members serving three-year terms, and the Western Pacific Region currently has five: Japan, Malaysia, China, Micronesia, and Australia. Japan and Malaysia are the two countries whose terms expire next May, and in addition to Korea, New Zealand and Brunei have expressed interest in the position.
However, through discussions among member states, there was a consensus that Korea and Brunei would become members of the WHO Executive Board, the ministry said. If Korea's bid is finalized at the 77th World Health Assembly, scheduled for next May, it will be the eighth time the country has held the position since joining the organization in 1949 and the first time it will be re-elected a year after its first term.
The ministry expects Korea to play a pivotal role in WHO policymaking as the representative of the Western Pacific region until May 2027. An Executive Board member state selects a health sector expert to serve as the Executive Director, who will participate in two regular Executive Board meetings each year.
Previous WHO Executive Directors have been Lee Yong-seung, former director of the Korea Central Health Center (1960-1963), Lee Sung-woo, former director of the National Institutes of Health (1984-1987), Shin Young-soo, director of the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific (1995-1998), Uhm Young-jin, former director-general of the Ministry of Health and Welfare (2001-2004), Son Myung-se, former director of the Korea Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (2007-2010), Jeon Man-bok, former director-general of the Ministry of Welfare (2013-2016), and Kim Kang-lip, former minister of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (2020-2023).
"Korea will be able to play a leading role in formulating WHO's budget, major business strategies, and regional comprehensive plans at the WHO Executive Board and General Assembly," the ministry said. "This means that we can actively reflect the values and priorities of Korea in addressing international health issues and formulating response strategies, and further strengthen the linkage and cooperation with government policies."
Lee Ho-yeol, the International Cooperation Officer at the Ministry of Health and Welfare who participated in the Regional Committee as a senior representative, said the appointment of the Executive Board is a request from the international community for Korea to continue to contribute and advise the WHO as a representative of the Western Pacific region in responding to current issues and establishing strategies.
"We will do our best to fulfill our role as a member of the WHO Executive Board to ensure the universal right to health for all people, including those in the Western Pacific region, and to prepare for and respond to future health crises thoroughly," Lee added.