Congratulations to our colleague Dr Ahmed Hankir who has been awarded one of only six World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General’s Health Leaders Awards, "for his work in empowering, dignifying and humanising people living with mental health conditions."

Dr Hankir joined our team in 2021 to become Lead for Public Education and Engagement at our WHO Collaborating Centre for Mental Health Disabilities and Human Rights.

The award was presented by WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at the 75th World Health Assembly in Geneva who remarked, “These awardees embody lifelong dedication, relentless advocacy, a commitment to equity, and selfless service of humanity.”

Dr Hankir's moving acceptance speech can be viewed on the WHO news pages. Once there, go to 'Plenary' on the right-hand side, then go to 'High-level welcome'. Fast forward to 2:19:00.

To read more about the awards and the winners, visit the WHO website, where you can also discover a little more about Dr Hankir.