Polio this week as of 09 December 2020 Format Polio this week as of 09 December 2020 Aidan O’Leary appointed new WHO polio eradication director – Mr Aidan O’Leary will assume the responsibilities of Director for Polio Eradication at WHO, effective1 January 2021. Mr O’Leary will succeed Mr Michel Zaffran, who will enter a well-deserved retirement end-February 2021. Mr O’Leary is from Ireland and is currently Head of Office in Yemen for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). He has served as the Chief of Polio Eradication in Pakistan for UNICEF and spent three years working in Afghanistan (between 2011 and 2014) as Head of Office, OCHA. He has extensive experience in emergency settings, including in Iraq and Syria, where he also held the position of Head of Office for OCHA.