Would-be WHO boss due next week

Tomris Turmen, the nominee for the post of the World Health Organization (WHO) director-general, is scheduled to visit Baku October 23-24, the health ministry told AssA-Irada.

Turmen, who was nominated to the post by Turkey, plans to hold discussions concerning his candidacy in the Azeri capital.

Nominees from 13 countries have applied for the position. The other candidates represent Kuwait, China, Mexico, Iceland, Myanmar, Syria, France, Mozambique, Japan, Ecuador, Finland and Spain. The nomination will be approved by the WHO executive committee at a meeting in Geneva November 6-8.

The previous WHO Director-General Dr Lee Jong-wook, a national of the Republic of Korea, died of a stroke at the age of 61 late in May.*