Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge
Biography
Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge began his second term as WHO Regional Director for Europe on 1 February 2025, following his unanimous renomination by the WHO Regional Committee for Europe and reappointment by the WHO Executive Board.
Dr Kluge has over 30 years of experience in medical practice and public health around the world. Having qualified in medicine, surgery and obstetrics from the Catholic University of Leuven in 1994, and tropical medicine from the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp in 1995, he began his career as a family doctor in Belgium.
On assignment with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Belgium from 1995, his international experience started in emergencies, working in Liberia and Somalia, coordinating a tuberculosis (TB) control programme and providing medical and public health services in conflict zones. Later, Dr Kluge coordinated MSF’s TB control programme in prisons in Siberia and served as the Regional TB Advisor for former Soviet Union countries in Moscow, Russian Federation.
Dr Kluge joined WHO in 1999 as TB and TB-HIV Project Manager at the WHO Country Office in the Russian Federation. During 2004–2009 his focus expanded as he took on roles of Medical Officer for TB and then Team Leader for the 3 diseases unit (HIV, TB and malaria) at the WHO Country Office in Myanmar. He also worked as a consultant to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Thailand on TB.
In 2009, Dr Kluge moved to the WHO Regional Office for Europe, and the following year was appointed Director of the Division of Health Systems and Public Health, and Special Representative of the Regional Director to Combat Multi/Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis.
Dr Kluge served as WHO Regional Director for Europe from 2020 to 2025, leading the Region through unprecedented public health crises, including COVID-19, mpox, war- and conflict-related emergencies and extreme weather events. Under his leadership, the European Programme of Work, 2020–2025 delivered notable achievements, including:
- facilitating the administration of 1.7 billion COVID-19 vaccines, saving 2.1 million lives;
- maintaining a polio-free Region despite outbreaks in 4 countries;
- establishing the world’s first Member State-endorsed “European regional action framework for behavioural and cultural insights for health” in 2022 and launching a 48-Member State behavioural and cultural insights network in 2023;
- supporting the development of 44 national digital health strategies or plans; and
- launching the Pan-European Mental Health Coalition and supporting mental health policies and legislation in 42 countries, including in emergency settings.
Recognizing that resilient public health relies on cross-sectoral collaboration, Dr Kluge has built strong relationships with heads of state and government, as well as health and other line ministers, to ensure a comprehensive and integrated approach to health protection.
He initiated the Pan-European (“Monti”) Commission on Health and Sustainable Development, which focused on learning from the COVID-19 pandemic to promote investments and reforms enhancing the resilience of health and social care systems. This led to the establishment of the WHO European Well-being Economy Initiative and the G20 Joint Task Force on Health and Finance under the Italian G7 Presidency. Other achievements include the establishment of the Pan-European Network for Disease Control and the development of roadmaps for health and well-being in the Western Balkans, Central Asia and small countries.
As he prepared for his second term, Dr Kluge launched a series of public hearings to shape the second European Programme of Work, which will guide health and well-being efforts in the European Region from 2026 to 2030 and beyond.
A Belgian national and true family man, Dr Kluge is fluent in English, French, German and Russian, as well as Dutch. He is married and has 2 daughters. He enjoys running, tennis, cycling and gardening.