Issued on: 23 May 2025
Deadline: 13 June 2025
The World Health Organization (WHO) is seeking experts to serve as members of Technical Advisory Group on Biosafety. This “Call for experts” provides information about the advisory group in question, the expert profiles being sought, the process to express interest, and the process of selection.
Background
The Technical Advisory Group on Biosafety (TAG-B) serves as a key advisory body guiding WHO's strategic priorities and action plans in the areas of laboratory biosafety and biosecurity. TAG-B is composed of technical experts in areas of biological science, evolving technology, transport, safety and security. TAG-B's functions include reviewing and recommending on the scientific, technical, and strategic facets of WHO's laboratory biosafety and biosecurity programme including advice on the development of norms & standards and guidance, setting priorities and key focus areas, advising on specific laboratory biosafety and biosecurity topics, suggesting opportunities for international initiatives and partnerships and providing guidance on risk control measures. TAG-B plays a pivotal role in shaping WHO's approach to managing biological risks, ensuring the organization stays at the forefront of global health security. The Biosafety and Biosecurity Team in the Bio-risk Management and Biosafety (BMB) Unit in Epidemic and Pandemic Threat Management (EPM) Department provides Secretariat function to the TAG-B.
Functions of the Technical Advisory Group on Biosafety (TAG-B)
In its capacity as an advisory body to WHO, the TAG-B shall have the following functions:
- To provide, review and make recommendations to WHO of the scientific technical and strategic aspects of the WHO biosafety programme
- To recommend priorities to WHO e.g. revision of documents, most important areas of biosafety and biosecurity on which to focus
- To advise the WHO on specific topics relating to biosafety and biosecurity
- To advise the WHO on opportunities, international initiatives and partnerships appropriate to the WHO Biosafety programme.
- To review and make recommendations to WHO on biosafety and biosecurity guidance
- To support the WHO Biosafety programme in implementing the resolution World Health Assembly 77.7 “Strengthening laboratory biological risk management”
Operations of the Technical Advisory Group on Biosafety
The advisory group will be expected to meet annually at least once virtually or in person at WHO Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland or another location, usually for 1-2 days. Working groups within the TAG-B might have more frequent virtual meetings, depending on the project. The working language of the group will be English.
Who can express interest?
The Technical Advisory Group on Biosafety will be multidisciplinary, with members who have a range of technical knowledge, skills and experience relevant to biosafety and biosecurity. A maximum of 20 members will be appointed for a three-year term.
WHO welcomes expressions of interest from experts in the fields of:
- biosafety and biosecurity;
- national and international policy, regulation and guidance;
- safe storage and transport of biological agents;
- biological containment facilities and primary containment devices;
- maximum containment;
- biological risk assessment;
- cybersecurity;
- competence development for biosafety and biosecurity;
- biosafety programme management/institutional biosafety committee;
- personal protective equipment (PPE);
- laboratory design and maintenance;
- decontamination and waste handling;
- outbreak preparedness and resilience;
- artificial intelligence (AI) applications for biosafety and biosecurity;
- new and emerging technologies in biological science; and
- new and emerging/re-emerging pathogens.
Submitting your expression of interest
To register your interest in being considered for the Technical Advisory Group on Biosafety, please submit the following documents by 13 June 2025 24:00 (midnight) Geneva time to biosafety@who.int using the subject line “Expression of interest for the Technical Advisory Group on Biosafety”:
- A cover letter, indicating your motivation to apply and how you satisfy the selection criteria. Please note that, if selected, membership will be in a personal capacity. Therefore do not use the letterhead or other identification of your employer);
- Your curriculum vitae; and
- A signed and completed Declaration of Interests (DOI) form for WHO Experts, available at https://www.who.int/about/ethics/declarations-of-interest.
- Additional to the documents above, we kindly request you to enter your data in this Microsoft Forms document. This facilitates and accelerates the selection process.
After submission, your expression of interest will be reviewed by WHO. Due to an expected high volume of interest, only selected individuals will be informed.
Important information about the selection processes and conditions of appointment
Members of WHO advisory groups (AGs) must be free of any real, potential or apparent conflicts of interest. To this end, applicants are required to complete the WHO Declaration of Interests for WHO Experts, and the selection as a member of a AG is, amongst other things, dependent on WHO determining that there is no conflict of interest or that any identified conflicts could be appropriately managed (in addition to WHO’s evaluation of an applicant’s experience, expertise and motivation and other criteria).
All AG members will serve in their individual expert capacity and shall not represent any governments, any commercial industries or entities, any research, academic or civil society organizations, or any other bodies, entities, institutions or organizations. They are expected to fully comply with the Code of Conduct for WHO Experts (https://www.who.int/about/ethics/declarations-of-interest). AG members will be expected to sign and return a completed confidentiality undertaking prior to the beginning of the first meeting.
At any point during the selection process, telephone interviews may be scheduled between an applicant and the WHO Secretariat to enable WHO to ask questions relating to the applicant’s experience and expertise and/or to assess whether the applicant meets the criteria for membership in the relevant AG.
The selection of members of the AGs will be made by WHO in its sole discretion, taking into account the following (non-exclusive) criteria: relevant technical expertise; experience in international and country policy work; communication skills; and ability to work constructively with people from different cultural backgrounds and orientations. The selection of AG members will also take account of the need for diverse perspectives from different regions, especially from low and middle-income countries, and for gender balance.
If selected by WHO, proposed members will be sent an invitation letter and a Memorandum of Agreement. Appointment as a member of a AG will be subject to the proposed member returning to WHO the countersigned copy of these two documents.
WHO reserves the right to accept or reject any expression of interest , to annul the open call process and reject all expressions of interest at any time without incurring any liability to the affected applicant or applicants and without any obligation to inform the affected applicant or applicants of the grounds for WHO's action. WHO may also decide, at any time, not to proceed with the establishment of the AG, disband an existing TAG or modify the work of the AG.
WHO shall not in any way be obliged to reveal, or discuss with any applicant, how an expression of interest was assessed, or to provide any other information relating to the evaluation/selection process or to state the reasons for not choosing a member.
WHO may publish the names and a short biography of the selected individuals on the WHO internet.
AG members will not be remunerated for their services in relation to the AG or otherwise. Travel and accommodation expenses of AG members to participate in AG meetings will be covered by WHO in accordance with its applicable policies, rules and procedures.
The appointment will be limited in time as indicated in the letter of appointment.
If you have any questions about this “Call for experts”, please write to biosafety@who.int well before the applicable deadline.