Issued on: [12 September 2024]
Deadline: [07 October 2024]
The World Health Organization (WHO) is seeking experts to serve as Members of the Eastern Mediterranean Advisory Committee on Health Research (ACHR). This Call for Experts provides information about the ACHR, the expert profiles being sought, the process for expressing interest, and the selection process.
Background
The ACHR was established in 1976 as the Eastern Mediterranean Advisory Committee on Medical Research to support the development of regional research initiatives aligned with the needs of member countries within WHO’s broader research framework.
Following a 1976 decision by the World Health Assembly, the Committee was renamed the Eastern Mediterranean Advisory Committee on Health Research. Its members are appointed for their scientific expertise and provide regular updates or reports on their fields as requested by WHO. In 2019, membership was expanded to better represent diverse expertise, geographical regions, and gender. Regular meetings are considered essential to leverage the ACHR’s knowledge, facilitate collaboration, and meet the overall goal of advancing health research in the Region.
Functions of the ACHR
Under its terms of reference, the ACHR is responsible for:
recommending to WHO regional health research and development policies in line with regional priorities for health, as outlined in WHO policies and strategies;
advise WHO in promoting research as a key tool for health development and a means for formulating evidence-based policies and actions for change;
advise and support WHO for the development of effective health research systems and strengthening research capacities in the countries of the Region; and
advise WHO in promoting ethics in conducting and reporting research in the Region.
Requirements of ACHR members
Commitment to attend the ACHR meeting, which is an in-person meeting held once every two years. While WHO covers travel costs for ACHR members, they receive no financial or other remuneration.
Attend ad-hoc virtual meetings of the ACHR which will be planned in-between the biannual meetings.
Provide ad-hoc advice to the WHO team (ACHR secretariat) within the ACHR’s remit.
Who can express interest?
The ACHR is multidisciplinary, with members who have a range of technical knowledge, skills and experience relevant to research.
WHO welcomes expressions of interest from people with:
formal education and training in medicine, nursing, epidemiology, public health, or social sciences and an exemplary track record of academic research on health; and
at least 10 years experience at a senior level in an academic and research setting at a national or international level.
knowledge of WHO standards and procedures for research, including applicable ethical standards, will be considered an advantage.
Submitting your expression of interest
To register your interest in becoming a member of the ACHR, please submit the following documents by [30 September 2024, e.g., 24:00h (midnight) Cairo time] to
a cover letter indicating your motivation to apply and how you satisfy the selection criteria –please note that, if you are selected, your ACHR membership will be in a personal capacity;
your curriculum vitae, including current and previous affiliations;
a list of your publications in peer-reviewed journals during the last 10 years;
a signed and completed Declaration of Interests (DOI) form for WHO Experts, available at https://www.who.int/about/ethics/declarations-of-interest.
After submission, WHO will review expressions of interest. Only short-listed individuals will be contacted for the next steps.
Important information about the selection processes and conditions of appointment
Members of WHO advisory groups must be free of any real, potential, or apparent conflicts of interest. To this end, applicants are required to complete the WHO Declaration of Interests for WHO Experts, and the selection as a member of an advisory group is dependent, among other things, on WHO determining that there is no conflict of interest or that any identified conflicts could be appropriately managed (in addition to WHO’s evaluation of an applicant’s experience, expertise and motivation and other criteria).
All advisory group members will serve in their individual expert capacity and shall not represent any governments, any commercial industries or entities, any research, academic or civil society organizations, or any other bodies, entities, institutions or organizations. They are expected to fully comply with the Code of Conduct for WHO Experts. Advisory group members will be expected to sign and return a completed confidentiality undertaking prior to the beginning of their first meeting.
At any point during the selection process, virtual interviews may be scheduled between an applicant and the WHO Secretariat to enable WHO to ask questions relating to the applicant’s experience and expertise and/or to assess whether the applicant meets the criteria for membership in the relevant advisory group.
The selection of members of the advisory groups will be made by WHO at its sole discretion, taking into account the following (non-exclusive) criteria: relevant technical expertise; experience in international and country policy work; communication skills; and ability to work constructively with people from different cultural backgrounds and orientations. The selection of advisory group members will also take account of the need for diverse perspectives from different regions, especially from low- and middle-income countries, and for gender balance.
If selected by WHO, proposed members will be sent an invitation letter and a Memorandum of Agreement. Appointment as a member of an advisory group will be subject to the proposed member returning to WHO the countersigned copy of these two documents.
It is the responsibility of the applicant to obtain any applicable clearance from their organization for such a role.
WHO reserves the right to accept or reject any expression of interest, to annul the open call process and reject all expressions of interest at any time without incurring any liability to the affected applicant or applicants and without any obligation to inform the affected applicant or applicants of the grounds for WHO’s action. WHO may also decide, at any time, not to proceed with the establishment of the advisory group, disband an existing advisory group or modify the work of the advisory group.
WHO shall not in any way be obliged to reveal or discuss with any applicant how an expression of interest was assessed, or to provide any other information relating to the evaluation/selection process, or to state the reasons for not choosing a member.
WHO may publish the names and a short biography of the selected individuals on the WHO internet.
Advisory group members will not be remunerated for their services related to the advisory group or otherwise. WHO will cover the travel and accommodation expenses of advisory group members to participate in advisory group meetings in accordance with its applicable policies, rules, and procedures.
The appointment will be limited in time, as indicated in the letter of appointment.
If you have any questions about this Call for Experts, please write to
