17 April 2018, Cairo – On 19 May 2018, a Special Session of the Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean will be held in Geneva, Switzerland, for the sole purpose of nominating a new Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean. Eight candidates have been proposed by Member States and information on each candidate is available on the Regional Office election website, from where the general public can learn more about the candidates and WHOs election process.  This is the first time that detailed professional profiles of candidates have been posted on the Regional Office website and is part of the reforms introduced by WHO in 2016, which aim to enhance transparency in WHO governance processes. WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Region is also the first WHO region to host a password protected question and answer web forum, which was opened on 10 April 2018. The forum provides an opportunity for Member States to post questions to candidates for the post of WHO Regional Director. Candidates will be asked questions on issues relating to technical and programmatic areas, administration, emergencies and the programme budget. Access to the web forum is, however, only available to Member States and cannot be accessed by WHO staff or the general public. A website on the Special session of the Regional Committee provides access to its documentation in Arabic, English and French.