In August 1994, when Rwanda had just emerged from the Genocide against the Tutsi, a young medical graduate from Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) took the first bus back to his homeland to offer help to a country ravaged in almost every aspect.

The young man, Richard Mihigo, now a contender for the WHO Africa Regional Office, was 28 years old at the time. He was posted to Nyanza District Hospital in what is now Huye district, where he encountered an overwhelming lack of medical personnel and various disease outbreaks, including cholera and measles, which, according to him, was the leading killer at the time.

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At that time, Rwanda had fewer than 30 doctors to serve its population, and Mihigo, despite having the option to remain and work in DR Congo, where he had spent his entire life, chose to be among them.

Born in 1966 in Bukavu, an eastern DR Congo town bordering Rwanda, Mihigo completed his primary education there before moving to Goma for secondary school and later attending the University of Kisangani for his medical studies.

He was raised in a family of 10 children and grew up under the care of a single mother, having lost his father in 1974 when he was only 8 years old. Despite such challenges, he credits his mother's dedication and hard work for his academic and professional achievements.

"My mother was 28 years old then, raising us at that time. But we all went to school and graduated from major colleges. She did this without having done outstanding studies, because she only completed secondary school,” he says.

Although Mihigo initially aspired to become a lawyer, his mother encouraged him to pursue medicine. Just as it is today, medicine was considered a highly promising career, one that parents often wished for their children. Consequently, Mihigo chose to study medicine at university.

"I used to be good at Maths and had good results. So, when I finished my secondary school, I applied to several universities and was admitted at immediately,” he says.

After finishing school and returning to Rwanda, Mihigo continued to benefit from his mother’s support as he embarked on clinical work in rural Rwanda in Huye in 1994, amidst challenges including receiving no pay due to the country's severe economic difficulties.

At that time, many civil servants were paid in the form of food stamps, but they did not complain. Mihigo says they did not ask questions like, "Do I have a car?” or "Do I have a place to sleep?”

"My mother is the one who gave me some money to sustain me for some months,” he recalls.

During the two years that he worked at the hospital, Mihigo played a key role in establishing systems, including organizing the outpatient department, establishing a maternity ward, and setting up a surgical ward for minor surgeries.

Later on, he was appointed District Medical Director for Nyanza from 1996 to 1999, and from there, his career shifted to public health.

Mihigo says his venture into public health began during his clinical practice when he noticed numerous problems requiring comprehensive health solutions.

"Around 1997 and 1998, we set up nutritional centres because the rate of malnutrition for children was very high. A child would come for malaria treatment, we would treat them, but when they went home, they would come back with more illnesses. Then I asked myself, what can we do to address the health needs of that child more comprehensively and not just wait until they get sick?” he says.

"This is how I fell in love with immunization because if you immunize a child, you are preventing that child from falling sick,” he adds.

Over time, he furthered his education by earning a Master of Public Health in International Health from Boston University School of Public Health, USA, in 2003.

To date, he has served in many positions, including as the Regional Coordinator of the Immunisation and Vaccine Development Programme at the WHO Regional Office for Africa from 2014 until early 2022.

Between April 2022 and February 2024, Mihigo was the Global Lead and Senior Director for COVID-19 Vaccine Delivery, Coordination, and Integration at Gavi, a position he held until his most recent candidacy to lead the WHO Africa Regional Office.

As he vies for the post, Mihigo envisions an African region where health is at the core of the development agenda, with Universal Health Coverage, accelerated efforts to ensure quality, accessible, and affordable health care for all, through a strong Primary Health Care system tailored to the needs of each African country.

His vision for Africa also focuses on prevention, preparedness, and response by strengthening surveillance, accelerating local manufacturing, and increasing the health workforce to address and manage emerging and re-emerging public health threats effectively.

Reducing the disease burden on the continent, combating communicable diseases, mitigating non-communicable diseases and mental health issues, as well as addressing maternal, newborn, and child mortality, are key components of his agenda for WHO Africa.