Historic opportunity for WHO to re-assert leadership.

摘要

When countries gather for WHO's Executive Board meeting next month, to appoint a new Director-General, they must select a candidate with the courage and political leadership necessary to address the most critical challenges the UN agency is facing today.The recent appearance of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis illustrates the scale of the work ahead/The health threat posed by this microbe in settings with a high prevalence of HIV highlights the urgent need for action for WHO to set the agenda for the fast-tracked development of new drugs and better and easier-to-use teststo diagnose tuberculosis and detect drug resistance, to replace today's increasingly ineffective tools.WHO will need to lead a process involving health ministries, regulatory agencies, drug companies, product-development partnerships, funding bodies, and non-governmental organisations, and it will need to deliver.