A new chief was elected yesterday by PAHO Member States during the 30th Pan American Sanitary Conference.
Dr. Barbosa da Silva Jr succeeds Dr. Carissa F. Etienne of Dominica, who has led PAHO since 2012. Barbosa da Silva Jr., a national of Brazil, received his medical degree from the Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil, and specialized in public health and epidemiology at the National School of Public Health, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIOCRUZ) in Rio de Janeiro. Currently, he serves as the Assistant Director of PAHO.
He holds a master’s degree in medical sciences and a PhD in public health from the University of Campinas in São Paulo. Throughout his career, he has served as the Municipal Secretary of Health of Olinda, State Secretary of Health in Pernambuco, and Director of the National Center for Epidemiology (CENEPI) in Brazil.
He will begin his five-year term on 1 February 2023.
