Who trusts a Chinese WHO?

On 22 January, the United States’ withdrawal from the World Health Organisation took effect. Filling the void left by Washington is Song Li, a Chinese health official and China’s chosen candidate to succeed the current Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Following the US withdrawal, China has become the main contributor to the WHO’s regular budget, and having one of its own officials at the helm would mean extending its sphere of influence to global health priorities and the management of future emergencies – or even current ones, given the vaccine crisis and the suspected case of plague in Siberia. Beijing already leads the FAO through Qu Dongyu, who has been in office since 2019 and is therefore due to step down, and is the second-largest contributor to the UN budget.

Song Li, whose candidacy was made official two weeks after the deadline, is not a politician but a specialist with a twenty-year career in the Chinese health administration. She worked on the response to SARS in 2003 and has previously collaborated with the WHO. She is a qualified candidate, though this in itself does not guarantee independence from the government. And then there is a trust issue. The WHO scientific panel tasked with investigating the origins of Covid reported in 2025 that significant information was still missing from China, and the reconstruction of the pandemic’s origins remains incomplete. Taiwan, which is among the countries that have managed their healthcare systems most effectively, has always been excluded from UN work due to pressure from China. A WHO suspected of being subject to political influence risks failing to secure cooperation from states when the next emergency arises.

The final shortlist of candidates for the next WHO Director-General is expected in November. In January, the Executive Board will shortlist up to three candidates, and in May the Assembly will vote by secret ballot. Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Belgium, Spain, Indonesia and Botswana remain in the running. The problem is not the nationality of whoever will lead the WHO, but that the organisation – already weakened – may end up losing the trust necessary to coordinate the global response to emergencies.