Saima Wazed resigns from WHO post following corruption allegations
Saima Wazed, daughter of Bangladesh's ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Photo: Collected
Amid ongoing investigations into corruption allegations, Saima Wazed, daughter of Bangladesh's ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has resigned from her position as the Regional Director for the South-East Asia Region at the World Health Organization (WHO). In her resignation letter submitted on Wednesday, she announced her immediate stepping down from the post.
Saima Wazed assumed the role of Regional Director for South-East Asia in early 2024 for a five-year term. However, the WHO placed her on unpaid administrative leave in July last year. This action followed a case filed against her by Bangladesh's Anti-Corruption Commission under the interim government in March 2025, alleging fraud and forgery. Furthermore, the WHO raised allegations against her concerning financial fraud during a trip to China and misrepresentation of her educational qualifications. These accusations were detailed in a letter sent by her lawyers to the WHO on July 3 of this year. However, Saima Wazed denied these allegations in a letter sent through her legal representatives at the time.
Addressing the financial irregularity charges, she explained that the incident was caused by an administrative error by an assistant responsible for processing routine expense reimbursements, involving an amount of $901.
Regarding her educational qualifications, she explained that she had received an honorary doctorate in recognition of her work with special needs children in Bangladesh, a matter she claimed to have clarified to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Meanwhile, Saima Wazed sent her resignation letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday. In it, she noted that the WHO had also accused her of illegally acquiring a plot of land in Bangladesh. She maintained that she had acquired the land prior to joining the organization and asserted that she became its lawful owner under a specific law applicable to members of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's family.
In her resignation letter, she added, "I was elected Regional Director to serve the countries of my region, and I carried out those duties with utmost sincerity."
She further wrote, "Since you have effectively prevented me from fulfilling my responsibilities, I have lost faith and confidence in the WHO's leadership. Moreover, after being placed on unpaid leave by your decision, going without any salary for nearly a year has rendered my financial situation unbearable. Under these circumstances, I have decided to step aside."
Saima Wazed declined to comment on the matter when contacted by Reuters, and the WHO did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
