Saima Wazed resigns as WHO Southeast Asia regional director after fraud investigations and allegations involving travel, credentials and land.
Saima Wazed, daughter of ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has resigned as the World Health Organization’s Southeast Asia regional director amid fraud investigations by the U.N. agency and Bangladeshi authorities.
Wazed announced her resignation on Wednesday in a letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, seen by Reuters, after being on unpaid administrative leave for nearly a year.
She was elected to the five-year position in early 2024 but was first placed on leave in July 2025 after Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission filed charges against her in March alleging fraud and forgery.
The WHO later accused Wazed of “committing financial fraud in relation to her travel to China” and misrepresenting her academic credentials, according to a July 3, 2026 letter from her lawyers to the agency, also seen by Reuters.
Wazed has denied the allegations.
The WHO also accused her of illegally acquiring a plot of land in Bangladesh, according to Wazed’s resignation letter. She said she acquired the property before joining the WHO and was entitled to it under Bangladeshi legislation covering the families of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh’s independence leader and Hasina’s father.
“I was elected to the position of Regional Director in order to serve the countries in my region, which I had sincerely done,” Wazed said in her resignation letter.
“Since you continue to prevent me from effectively carrying out my duties, I have lost all trust and confidence in your leadership of WHO,” she wrote.
“Moreover, after nearly one year without any remuneration following your decision to place me on unpaid leave, my financial situation has become untenable. In these circumstances, I am choosing to step aside.”
Wazed declined to comment further, while the WHO did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Last month, the agency confirmed that Wazed remained on leave but declined to provide further details, citing confidentiality.
Two sources told Reuters that the WHO had been preparing to formally remove Wazed from office. One source said the agency planned to announce nominations for the position on October 12, vet applications in December and hold elections on January 24.
Regional directors are among the WHO’s most influential health policy officials, overseeing responses to outbreaks and emergencies and adapting the organisation’s policies to regional conditions.
The directors are elected every five years by member states, including Bangladesh and India, within the Southeast Asia region.
In a July letter, Wazed’s lawyers rejected the travel fraud allegation, saying an assistant had made an administrative error while processing routine reimbursement requests involving $901.
On the academic credentials allegation, Wazed said she held an honorary doctorate for her work on autism in Bangladesh and had been transparent with Tedros about the qualification.
