TEDROS ADHANOM

The Ministry of Health started by restructuring Ethiopia's previously male-dominated health system with women at the center.

I believe UNAIDS' provocative leadership has been critical in addressing the AIDS epidemic and converting it from a death sentence to a chronic health condition.

Over the years, I have worked on programs in Africa and around the globe to combat malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV. I have been witness to incredible progress in these fights.

Simply put, girls and women are the keys that will unlock sustainable development. They are also at the center of the healthier and more resilient societies we desire.

I had always believed that standing with Ethiopia's most vulnerable was simply the right thing to do.

Health is both the foundation of my academic and professional careers and a personal passion. I know first-hand the important role health security plays in protecting lives and preventing the spread of disease.

Al Qaeda and ISIS may have global aspirations, but their ability to penetrate a society is strongly influenced by local conditions.

The specter of climate change threatens worsening natural disasters, rapid urbanization, forced migration, and economic hardship for the most vulnerable. Despite significant global advances, inability to effectively address epidemics and health emergencies still prevail and continuously threaten global health security and economic development.

When we tell girls that we expect them to pursue education and excel in education, we are changing the narrative and are opening the door to the leaders of our future.

In 2009, when I was Health Minister, we re-engineered our business processes to examine the weaknesses and opportunities in our health system. Following that exercise, we established a public health emergency management system from national to district level to prevent and provide rapid response to outbreaks.

We live in a world at constant risk of public health emergencies. In our increasingly interconnected world, public health emergencies can affect anyone, anywhere.

Soon after joining the Ministry of Health in Ethiopia, I was called upon as part of team to respond to a malaria outbreak. My team was dispatched to a village in southwestern Ethiopia, where I not only observed the malaria epidemic's shocking effects on adults and children but also experienced it first-hand.

Vaccination and other essential preventive services must be delivered close within communities.

My experience in Ethiopia helped shape my vision for WHO. We need to promote evidence-based decision-making and awareness. Specifically, we need to advocate for research and development, champion and support global and regional coalitions, and strengthen national capacity.

Stabilizing economies and reducing political and civil strife are means to development and, as such, are part of the approach for promoting healthy populations.

The fight against HIV/AIDS cannot be won unless countries take ownership of protecting and supporting the health of communities both near and far.

Scaling up community health workers and health system capacity must be a fundamental component of our efforts to achieve universal health coverage, which will be my topmost priority if elected as Director-General.

Ensuring investment in health systems will not only help us manage HIV/AIDS, it will also support our efforts to prevent and treat other communicable and noncommunicable diseases as well as prevent and respond to future health emergencies.

Education gives girls the knowledge, experience, and confidence to play their rightful role in society.

New malaria cases fell by 21 percent between 2010 and 2015 worldwide, and malaria death rates fell by 29 percent in the same period. Yet, though malaria is preventable and treatable, it is still claiming too many lives around the world.

I speak often about my personal experiences with malaria in the field as a young public health officer because it had such a profound impact on my life and my work.

While WHO has never had a director from Africa, no one should elect me because I am from Africa.

Depression is a leading cause of ill health and disability, and many do not have access to mental health services and face significant social stigma around their disease.

I envision a world where everyone can lead healthy and productive lives, regardless of who they are or where they live.

I think the world should unite and focus on strong health systems to prepare the whole world to prevent epidemics - or if there is an outbreak, to manage it quickly - because viruses don't respect borders, and they don't need visas.