Hi All. My name is Dionne and I am at the WHO in the Department of Public Health and Research. It has so far been an eye-opening experience on the job and also living in this city. Coming from the Bay Area, I thought I was pretty familiar with the idea of "diversity", but being in Geneva, especially at the WHO has given the word a whole new meaning for me. "Multiculturalism" is one of the WHO's core competencies and it is reflected in the composition of the staff and hundreds of interns. It has been amazing to meet people who have lived, worked and traveled all over the world and hear about their insight on global health.
With that said, the west and the developed countries are well overrepresented on the staff and also among interns. At an intern meeting with the DG last week, an intern asked the DG why currently over 85% were from developed countries and if there has been an effort to diversify. She acknowledged the discrepancy and even admitted that English is dominant in the WHO despite have five official languages. The reasoning is clear why: Geneva is an extremely expensive place to live and work and unfortunately out of reach for many talented students from developing countries. This is an issue that apparently gets talked about every year, but has not really been addressed. In these tough financial times, I predict that it is even lower on the agenda than years past.
Despite this, I have been amazed at how such a large organization such as the WHO is able to keep the true goal at heart. I have had many conversations with staff, in which they advocate for several issues such as the importance of local ownership of tools, culturally appropriate material and focusing on those who are the most underserved.
I have a lot more to learn here and am excited to see what the rest of my time here will bring. Good luck, Fellows! I enjoy reading about your experiences and am learning from you across the world in Switzerland!
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