Dr Assad Hafeez was appointed WHO Representative in the State of Kuwait in March 2021. He previously served as Director-General of Health in the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination, Pakistan, in addition to holding several senior policy and leadership positions in government. He was professor and Vice-Chancellor at the National Public Health University, Pakistan, and has held a professorship in the Global Health Department at the University of Manitoba, Canada. Dr Hafeez was Chair and Vice-Chair of the Executive Board of WHO for a number of years, and has been a member of many WHO committees in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region. He has also worked in various capacities with ADB, UNFPA, UNICEF and USAID.
Dr Hafeez was trained in paediatric medicine and health policy in Pakistan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, and holds a MRCP in paediatrics, a Master’s degree in epidemiology and a PhD in public health.