The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday elected its next Africa director, a physician from Botswana who is a longtime veteran of the U.N. health agency. The announcement of the election of Matshidiso Moeti was made in Cotonou, Benin by Senegalese Health Minister Awa Marie Coll Seck, who chaired the vote. Moeti expressed optimism that the Ebola outbreak, which has killed almost 5,000 people, would be under control within three months. "I hope that the [Ebola] situation will be improved by the time I take office in February 2015," Moeti said. She said the health systems in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea have been devastated by the epidemic and would need to be rebuilt, and that readiness for any future Ebola outbreak must be improved, including warning systems and monitoring capabilities.
