Professor Ala Alwan is Regional Director Emeritus, World Health Organization (WHO), Professor and Principal Investigator for the Disease Control Priorities 3 (DCP3) project at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and Clinical Professor of Global Health, University of Washington. At WHO, Dr Alwan held several senior leadership positions, including Assistant Director-General for Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health, Assistant Director-General and Representative of the Director-General for Emergencies and Health Action in Crises, Director of the Department of noncommunicable diseases. He was also the Regional Director for the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region. He led important global initiatives to address key global and regional challenges in areas like emergency preparedness and response, noncommunicable diseases, essential public health functions, health diplomacy and Universal Health Coverage.  In his home country, Iraq, he was Professor of Medicine and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Mustansiriya University, Baghdad, Minister of Education and Health from 2003-2005 and Minister of Health and Environment from 2018-2019. He holds honorary appointments, advisory positions and memberships in many international institutions, Boards, and Commissions.