the brazilian sanitarian Jarbas Barbosa took over this Tuesday (31) the post of general director of PAHO (Pan American Health Organization), branch of the WHO (World Health Organization) in the continent.
Elected at the end of September last year, Barbosa is the second Brazilian to head the entity in 120 years since its foundation — the first had been Carlyle Guerra de Macedo (1983-1995). He will remain in the role until 2028.
In his speech, the new director general of PAHO spoke about the challenges that his management will face in the coming years.
“Countries in the region face a complex epidemiological situation, with the persistence of communicable diseases, the risk of outbreaks and epidemics, the increase in non-communicable diseases, the damage caused by traffic accidents and violence, and the effects of climate change. The region also has many inequalities between and within countries and an accelerated demographic transition in Latin America and the Caribbean.”
He defended the idea that the countries of the continent have integrated national health systems, a strong network of primary care, specialized and quality hospital services, in addition to better surveillance and disease prevention.
Barbosa also said that he will work to end the Covid-19 pandemic in the region and apply lessons learned during this period to address vulnerabilities and ensure member states are better prepared for future threats.
The Brazilian Minister of Health, Nísia Trindade Lima, was present at the inauguration, in Washington, in the United States. She read a message sent by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, congratulating him on his new role.
According to Lula, sending the minister and a delegation to the inauguration indicates the “priority that the Brazilian government gives to global health issues and to PAHO, in particular”.
Also according to Lula’s letter, Jarbas Barbosa “made clear his commitment to health and science” throughout his career in all spheres of the SUS.
Nísia stated that the sanitarista has “an exemplary trajectory in the commitment to health in our continent” and “is one of the main builders of public health in Brazil and also in the regions of the Americas”.
In a recorded video, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus congratulated Barbosa on taking office.
“The member states of the Americas have placed their trust in you, and for very good reasons: your long and illustrious career in public health in Brazil and at PAHO speaks for itself.”
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Jarbas Barbosa holds a degree in medicine from the Federal University of Pernambuco, a specialist in public health and epidemiology from the Fiocruz National School of Public Health (Oswaldo Cruz Foundation), a master’s degree in medical sciences and a doctorate in collective health from Unicamp (State University of Campinas).
He began his career as secretary of health in the city of Olinda (PE) and later was state secretary of health in Pernambuco.
In Brasilia, he held the position of director of Cenapi (National Center of Epidemiology), secretary of Health Surveillance of the Ministry of Health and executive secretary of the same portfolio.
He was appointed manager of Health Surveillance, Prevention and Disease Control at PAHO between 2007 and 2010.
Back in Brazil, he again took over the Health Surveillance Secretariat of the Ministry of Health from 2011 to 2015. He also headed the Ministry of Science, Technology and Strategic Inputs Secretariat.
In July 2015, Jarbas Barbosa was CEO of Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) between July 2015 and July 2018, when he was appointed deputy director of PAHO.