WHO chief apologises for DR Congo abuse scandal

(File photo) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

The head of the World Health Organisation yesterday apologised after independent investigators probing allegations of sexual abuse in the DR Congo by the UN agency’s staff issued a damning indictment citing “clear structural failures” and “individual negligence.” “This is a dark day for WHO,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said after the report into the accusations against local and international personnel deployed in the country to fight an Ebola outbreak from 2018 to 2020. The commission interviewed dozens of women who said they were offered work in exchange for sex, or were victims of rape. “The first thing I want to say to the victims and survivors...I am sorry,” Tedros told a news conference. “It is my top priority that the perpetrators are not excused but held to account,” added Tedros, 56, who will seek a second term at the head of the powerful UN agency based in Geneva. Already, two senior staff have been placed on administrative leave, Tedros said, adding: “We’re taking steps to ensure that others who may be implicated are temporarily relieved of any decision-making role in respect of allegations of exploitation and abuse.” The 35-page report paints a grim picture, noting “the scale of incidents of sexual exploitation and abuse in the response to the 10th Ebola outbreak, all of which contributed to the increased vulnerability of ‘alleged victims’ who were not provided with the necessary support and assistance required for such degrading experiences.” The special commission identified 83 suspects, including 21 employed by the WHO. Four have had their contracts terminated and are banned from future employment at the WHO, “and we will notify the broader UN system,” Tedros said. The agency will also refer rape allegations to the Congolese authorities and those of other concerned states, he added. The report, which Tedros said “makes for harrowing reading”, cited “individual negligence that may amount to professional misconduct”. It also said it found “clear structural failures and unpreparedness to manage the risks of incidents of sexual exploitation and abuse” in the poor central African country. Following media reports in May that WHO management knew of alleged cases in the DR Congo and did not act, 53 countries had jointly demanded that the WHO display “strong and exemplary leadership” on preventing sexual abuse.