WHO Representative and Head of Office, Kingdom of Bahrain

Dr Tasnim Atatrah assumed her role as WHO Representative and Head of Office in Bahrain in June 2021. She is a public health specialist and medical doctor. She joined WHO in 2010 and has worked in 12 countries across WHO's Eastern Mediterranean and European regions in various capacities.

Dr Atatrah was previously Health Emergency Coordinator for the World Health Organization for Central Asia. She has worked for the World Health Organization since 2010. Dr Atatrah has led interventions to strengthen countries’ emergency preparedness, response and recovery, reinforce health systems, promote universal health coverage, provide technical support to ministries, leading the design and implementation of capacity building. She has led the emergency response operation and public health humanitarian response for Gaza, Syria, and Libya. She has mobilized resources and led interventions to promote health wellbeing in refugee camps in Palestine, Jordan and Lebanon.

Dr Atatrah worked in Palestine with Health Sector Reform and Development. She led the Monitoring and Evaluation team, managed budget and systems. She worked as Communication Specialist, to design a national communication and social mobilization plan. She worked as a Senior Health Specialist focusing on improving mothers’ and children’s access to quality services. She worked for local NGOs as a Capacity Building Advisor and a Rehabilitation & Development Specialist. She worked as a medical clinician at primary health and emergency clinics in remote areas.

She has been awarded Doctor in Medicine, Master of Public Health, and High diploma in Management of Humanitarian Health and Nutrition Programs. She is certified in PMP, Human Rights, Gender and Disability mainstreaming, Refugee and Migration law, Global Governance, and Sustainable development.