Hasina’s daughter resigns as WHO regional head

NEW DELHI: Saima Wazed, the World Health Organisation’s Southeast Asia head and daughter of ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, resigned on Wednesday, according to her resignation letter, following fraud investigations by the UN agency and Bangladeshi authorities.

Wazed’s case shows how the fallout from Hasina’s ouster following a deadly uprising against her around mid-2024 has spread to her family members, beyond her political allies. Many of Hasina’s allies face criminal charges, including for alleged corruption in Bangladesh, or live in self-imposed exile like Hasina.

In a statement on Thursday, the WHO said a committee had recommended Wazed’s dismissal the day before her resignation. The UN health agency had placed Wazed, who took office as its Southeast Asia regional director in early 2024 for a five-year term, on unpaid administrative leave late last year. She was first sent on leave in July 2025 after Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission, under an interim government that replaced Hasina, filed charges against her in March that year alleging fraud and forgery.

The WHO accused Wazed of “committing financial fraud in relation to her travel to China” and of misrepresenting her academic credentials, according to a separate letter from her lawyers to the WHO on July 3, 2026. Wazed has denied the allegations.

The global health body has accused Saima Wazed of falsifying her academic qualifications and committing financial fraud

The WHO also alleged she had illegally acquired a plot of land in Bangladesh, according to her resignation letter to WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Wazed said she acquired the land before she joined the WHO and was entitled to it under a Bangladeshi law that covered the families of the country’s independence leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasina’s father.

Prevented from duties

“I was elected to the position of Regional Director in order to serve the countries in my region, which I had sincerely done,” Wazed said in her resignation letter to Tedros sent late on Wednesday. “Since you continue to prevent me from effectively carrying out my duties, I have lost all trust and confidence in your leadership of WHO,” she wrote. “Moreover, after nearly one year without any remuneration following your decision to place me on unpaid leave, my financial situation has become untenable. In these circumstances, I am choosing to step aside.” Wazed declined to comment further.

The WHO said its regional committee and executive board would now consider her resignation. A spokesperson said by email the matter had been handled “with due regard for fairness and due process, while safeguarding the interests of the Organisation and its ability to fulfil its mandate.” Last month, it said Wazed was on leave but declined to comment further about her case to maintain confidentiality.

Two sources said earlier the UN agency was planning to formally remove Wazed. One of them said the WHO would announce nominations for the role on October 12, vet applications in December and hold elections on Jan 24. On Thursday, the agency said Dr Nilesh Buddha would continue as officer-in-charge pending the appointment of a new regional head. The sources declined to be named given the sensitivity of the matter.

Published in Dawn, September 11th, 2026