Nigerian International Scholar, Obijiofor Aginam, Appointed To WHO’s Global Committee Of Experts

A Nigerian international law and global health governance scholar, Dr Obijiofor Aginam, has been appointed to the Global Committee of Experts convened by the Director General of the World Health Organization to review the International Health Regulations, WHO’s regulatory framework for the prevention, detection and control of pandemic diseases that constitute public health emergency of international concern.

Dr Aginam will work with 19 other eminent global experts in the Review Committee in accordance with the WHO Regulations for Expert Advisory Panels and Committees, and the Committee will provide its report to the WHO Director-General no later than mid-January 2023. The sole purpose of Expert Review Committee is to provide technical recommendations to the Director-General on amendments proposed by WHO member states to the International Health Regulations as decided by the World Health Assembly, the highest policy making organ of the WHO.

The expert review committee has been convened on 6 October and will hold face to face meetings in Geneva between now and January 2023.

Concurrently, Dr Aginam has been appointed to serve on the WHO Roster of Experts who could be called upon to advise the Director General of World Health Organization on when to declare a pandemic a public health emergency of international concern. Dr Aginam, who recently completed a 12-year term at the United Nations University in Japan and Malaysia is currently an Adjunct Research Professor of Law and Legal Studies at Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada, and Principal Visiting Fellow at United Nations University-IIGH in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.