WHO regional director to receive Hilal-e-Quaid-e-Azam

KARACHI: World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr Hussain A Gezairy is to visit Pakistan for three days from March 23 to receive “Hilal-e-Quaid-e-Azam” from President Musharraf.

Dr Gazeiry will also visit Karachi and meet senior officials to discuss issues like polio eradication.

Dr Gezairy was born in Makkah in 1934 and read medicine at Kasr El Aini’s Faculty of Medicine in Cairo, Egypt in 1957. He obtained a surgery diploma in 1960. He joined the University of Riyadh and took post-graduation courses in surgery from London. He achieved a Fellowship of the Royal College of England in 1965. He was the founding dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Riyadh University, in 1969.

In October 1975, Dr Gezairy became the health minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He continued to work there till he became the regional director of the WHO in October 1982. Since then he has been re-appointed several times and still holds the office. Dr Gezairy is a founder and promoter of medical studies in Saudi Arabia and a member of academic and medical societies in the Arab World.

He was also the first president of the Supreme Council of the Arab Board for Medical Specialisations. He also received the King Abdul Aziz decoration, Grade II granted by Khalid Bin Abdul Aziz in 1975, Leopold II Medal, the Grand Ornament granted by the king of Belgium in 1975, State Knight Decoration, Grade II, from Sultan Haji Ahmed Shah, King of Malaysia, Independence Decoration, Grade I granted by King Hussein of Jordan in 1990, The Lebanese Health, Golden Medal for Ment, Grade I in 1993 and several other medals.

Dr Gezairy has also been awarded fellowships and scientific memberships from varied institutions including the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan, Islamic Organisation of Medical Sciences, Pan Arab Project for Child Development, Madinatul Hikmat Council, Supreme Council of Arab Board of Medical Specialisations, the Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom and Glasgow and the Sudanese Council for Medical Specialisation. —APP

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