WHO
- Making contributions to Japanese
health care and world health care -

Dr. Hiroshi Nakajima (class of 1954)
Director General, WHO

*Dr. Nakajima in a health center
in the Central African Republic

The Asahi Newspaper article in 1988 describing the surprise appointment of Dr. Nakajima as director general of the WHO said that the only per son who wasn't surprised was Dr. Nakajima himself, a self-described optimist.

This is from an interview after Dr . Nakajima had been appointed as the first Japanese to be director general of the WHO. After graduating from Tokyo Medical University in 1954, Dr . Nakajima did research on neuropharmacology at the University of Paris. He then occupied variety of posts in the WHO and now is making great contributions to international health care. The article mentioned above ended as follows: In appearance he resembles Daikoku (God of Good Fortune and Prosperity) and his character is extremely open. With his very matter-of-fact approach to international society, he firmly believes that the traditional Japanese style is a disadvantage.

Since this was the first time for a Japanese to be appointed to the top position in a major UN organ, his appointment received a lot of attention in the newspapers at the time. In 1993 he was re-elected to the position.

At present world health is facing a time of change, and Dr. Nakajima feels that it is a very difficult era in which medical research and medical education have to be reconciled and harmonized, in order to develop human resources for health care and also to promote research.

"I look to the students of Tokyo Medical University to put the same weight on developing themselves as human beings as upon their medical studies and look forward to their development, graduation, entering society and contributing to the health care of both Japan and the world."