Margaret Chan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Margaret Chan
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陳馮富珍
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Chan in 2011
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| 7th Director-General of the World Health Organization | |
| In office 9 November 2006 – 1 July 2017 |
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| Preceded by | Anders Nordström (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Tedros Adhanom |
| 4th Director of Health, Hong Kong | |
| In office 6 June 1994 – 20 August 2003 |
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| Preceded by | Lee Shu-Hung |
| Succeeded by | Lam Ping-Yan |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Margaret Fung Fu-chun
21 August 1947 British Hong Kong |
| Nationality | Chinese Canadian |
| Spouse | David Chan |
| Alma mater | Northecote College of Education (Cert) University of Western Ontario (BA, MD) National University of Singapore (MS) |
| Margaret Chan | |||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 陳馮富珍 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 陈冯富珍 | ||||||||||
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Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun (born August 21, 1947) is a Chinese-Canadian doctor. She was the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) from 2006 to 2017. Before that, she was the Director of Health in the Hong Kong Government. She also worked as an Assistant Director-General for the WHO. In 2014, Forbes magazine called her the 30th most powerful woman in the world.
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Early Life and Education
Margaret Chan was born and grew up in British Hong Kong. Her family came from Shunde, a place in China.
She first studied teaching at the Education University of Hong Kong. She earned a teaching certificate there. Later, she went to the University of Western Ontario in Canada. She got a bachelor's degree in 1973 and a medical degree in 1977. In 1985, she earned a master's degree in public health from the National University of Singapore. She also studied management at Harvard Business School in 1991.
Career in Public Health
Starting Her Career
Margaret Chan began working for the Hong Kong government in December 1978. She started as a medical officer. She was promoted several times in the Department of Health. In June 1994, she became the first woman to lead the Department of Health.
Leading Hong Kong's Health Department
Chan was the Director of Health in Hong Kong from 1994 to 2003. During this time, she faced two major health crises. These were the 1997 H5N1 avian influenza (bird flu) outbreak and the 2003 SARS outbreak.
At first, during the bird flu outbreak, she tried to calm people. She said things like "I ate chicken last night." But as more people got sick, some criticized her for not acting quickly enough. To control the bird flu, she ordered the killing of 1.5 million chickens. This was a difficult decision, but it helped stop the spread of the disease.
The SARS outbreak was also very serious, causing many deaths. Some people criticized her for being too slow to react. They also said she trusted information from mainland China too much. However, a government committee later said the problem was not just her fault. They pointed out that Hong Kong's health system had issues with sharing information between different departments.
Working for the World Health Organization
In August 2003, Margaret Chan left the Hong Kong government. She joined the World Health Organization (WHO). She first worked as a special representative for pandemic flu. She also became an Assistant Director-General for infectious diseases.
Leading the WHO
Margaret Chan became the Director-General of the WHO in November 2006. She served two five-year terms until July 2017. When she was appointed, she said her main goal was to improve the health of people in Africa. She also wanted to focus on the health of women and those most in need.
First Term as Director-General
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In 2007, some groups criticized her for questioning the quality of cheaper, generic medicines. In 2010, she was criticized for being too worried about the 2009 flu pandemic. The flu turned out to be less severe than expected.
After visiting North Korea in 2010, Chan said the country had good medical staff. She also noted that people there did not seem to have problems with obesity. Some people disagreed with her comments, saying they did not show the full picture. In 2011, the WHO had to cut its budget and jobs. This was due to money problems in countries that donate to the organization.
Second Term as Director-General
In 2013, the WHO was accused of being too soft on the Syrian government. This happened when polio reappeared in Syria. In 2014 and 2015, Chan faced strong criticism again. This was because the WHO was slow to respond to the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa. In 2016, she started the Health Emergencies Programme. This program helps the WHO respond faster to health crises.
After Her Time at WHO
After leaving the WHO, Margaret Chan continued to work in global health. In 2018, she joined a group that looks at how taxes can improve health. She also became an advisor for the Boao Forum for Asia. In 2021, she supported a new election system in Hong Kong. In 2022, she spoke out against Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan. She said it interfered with China's internal affairs.
Other Activities
- She is a member of the Senior Advisory Board for Exemplars in Global Health.
Recognition and Awards
In 1997, Margaret Chan became a Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine. This is part of the Royal College of Physicians in the United Kingdom. She was also made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II. In 2014, Forbes magazine listed her as the 30th most powerful woman in the world.
Personal Life
Margaret Chan is married to David Chan. He is an eye doctor, also known as an ophthalmologist.
See also
In Spanish: Margaret Chan para niños
