*International Aid Organizations Honor United Nations
Deputy Secretary-General for Contributions to Global Health
As Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro’s mandate comes to an end, the Roll Back Malaria
(RBM)
Partnership, UNAIDS and UNFPA gather at the UN to recognize her work in
global health & development.****
(12 June 2012; New York);
As Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro’s term as United Nations Deputy Secretary-General
comes to an end, international aid organizations gathered at the UN
headquarters in New York Tuesday
evening to honor her for her contributions to global health.
At a reception co-hosted by the Roll Back
Malaria (RBM) Partnership, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS
(UNAIDS) and the United
Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), hundreds of guests from the UN community,
including Secretary-
General Ban Ki-moon, the private sector and the NGO community joined
together to celebrate and
recognize the immense progress the Tanzania native has helped forge against
global health and
development targets under her mandate, which began in 2007.
In remarks given by the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon described Dr.
Migiro as a “true champion for
global health” and discussed the heart, skill and talent she has brought to
her role as Deputy Secretary-
General.
The evening also saw remarks from UNAIDS Executive Director, Michel Sidibé,
and UNFPA
Executive Director, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, as each paid tribute to Dr.
Migiro’s many efforts against
leading global health challenges in her time as Deputy Secretary-General.
“As Deputy Secretary-General, Dr. Migiro has constantly recognized the
critical role health plays in
development, and she has been a fervent advocate to ensure many of the most
pressing global health
issues of our time were at the top of the international agenda,” says Hervé
Verhoosel, Representative in
New York and Head of External Relations for the Roll Back Malaria (RBM)
Partnership. “Under the
leadership of the Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, Dr. Migiro has brought a
great spirit of partnership to
the UN, urging necessary public-private partnerships and collaboration to
make progress against global
health targets.”
Since accepting her mandate as Deputy Secretary-General in 2007, Dr. Migiro
has supported the
Secretary-General’s efforts around population issues and health, including
Millennium Development Goal
(MDG) 6, which calls for a decrease in incidence of infectious disease like
malaria, HIV and Tuberculosis.
A constant supporter of public-private partnerships to overcome global
health challenges, Dr. Migiro’s
leadership has encouraged greater political action for health and brought
new and unique partners to the
UN.
She has visited countless countries around the world to highlight work
being done against leading
health problems, and among other activities, she has represented the UN in
the Commission on
Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health, supported
efforts against polio and
Avian Influenza, strengthened partnerships around tuberculosis, helped
ensure the adoption of the 2011
Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS and championed malaria through high-level
platforms.
With Dr. Migiro’s mandate coming to a close, the UN Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon announced in
January 2012 that Mr. Jan Ellison of Sweden had been designated to take up
the post of Deputy
Secretary-General beginning 1 July 2012.