Background
Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) such as dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika viruses are public health threats in tropical and sub-tropical areas. The frequency and magnitude of outbreaks of diseases caused by these arboviruses are increasing globally, fuelled by the convergence of ecologic, economic and social factors. The WHO global arbovirus programme promotes comprehensive public health approaches, embedded within national health systems and aligned with broader epidemic and pandemic management efforts, including the WHO Health Emergency Preparedness, Response and Resilience (HEPR) Framework. The arbovirus strategy will build on and complement existing global strategies and initiatives, including the Eliminate Yellow Fever Epidemics (EYE) Strategy, the Global Arbovirus Initiative (GLAI), the Global Vector Control Response 2017-2030, Immunization Agenda 2030, the NTD Roadmap, and other relevant frameworks, while contributing to the implementation of the 14th WHO’s General Programme of Work, the International Health Regulations (2005), and the WHO Pandemic Agreement.
Arboviral diseases are complex, climate-sensitive threats that sit at the intersection of multiple sectors, including human health, animal health, environmental management, urban health and planning, and global health security, and require the coordinated application of diverse technical domains, spanning surveillance, clinical care, laboratory diagnostics, vaccination, vector control, and community engagement. In this context, the Technical Advisory Group on Arboviral Diseases (TAG-Arbovirus) brings together a range of expertise to ensure that WHO recommendations reflect the breadth of scientific evidence, operational experience, and cross-sectoral considerations needed to address arboviral risks across settings.
Functions of TAG-Arbovirus
1. to independently review the scientific, technical and strategic aspects of WHO technical work on arboviruses, and any necessary modifications and/or updates to the arboviral scope of work;
2. to support the identification of arbovirus research priorities for consideration and inclusion in WHO research agendas and related strategic frameworks;
3. to advise WHO on approaches and/or strategies that WHO should recommend to Member States to prevent, prepare for and respond to arboviral diseases.
The full Terms of Reference can be accessed here.
Operations of the TAG-Arbovirus
The TAG shall normally meet once a year. However, WHO may convene additional meetings, including for emergencies. TAG meetings may be held in person (at WHO headquarters in Geneva or another location, as determined by WHO) or virtually, via video or teleconference, to be decided on an ad-hoc basis. TAG meetings may be held as open or closed sessions, as decided by the Chairperson in consultation with the WHO Secretariat. TAG members are expected to attend meetings. If a member misses two consecutive meetings, WHO may end his/her appointment as a member of the TAG.
Who can express interest?
The TAG-Arbovirus is multidisciplinary, with members who have a range of technical knowledge, skills and experience relevant to virus evolution. Up to 20 Members may be selected.
WHO welcomes expressions of interest from applicants with expertise in the following:
- Epidemiology;
- Surveillance, monitoring and evaluation;
- Disease burden modelling and forecasting;
- Medical entomology;
- Vector surveillance and control;
- Laboratory and diagnostics;
- Clinical virology;
- Clinical management;
- Vaccines and immunization;
- Risk communication and community engagement;
- One Health approaches;
- Zoonotic diseases;
- Environment, climate and health;
- Urban health;
- Health economics and financing;
- Health policy and health systems;
- Control programme management and implementation, including emergency response;
- Global health security and International Health Regulations.
Applicants should have experience applying their expertise in these fields to support public health decision making.
Submitting your expression of interest
To register your interest in being considered for the TAG-Arboviruses, please submit the following documents by 23:59 CEST on 11 September 2026 to arbovirusinfo@who.int using the subject line “Expression of interest for the Technical Advisory Group on Arboviral Diseases":
- 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 full resume or 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.
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 arbovirusinfo@who.int well before the applicable deadline.