Suraya Dalil

Suraya Dalil (Uzbek/), (born 1970) is an Afghan physician and politician who served as Minister of Public Health from 2010 to 2014 and was the country's Permanent Representative to the United Nations from November 2015 until March 2019.

Early life and education Dalil was born in Kabul in February 1970. Her father was a teacher and encouraged her education despite it being unusual at the time. Her family then moved to Mazar-i-Sharif after her father was injured during the civil war.

In 2004, Dalil was awarded a Presidential Scholarship to attend the Harvard School of Public Health and graduated with a master's degree in public health in 2005.

In November 2015, President Ashraf Ghani appointed Dalil as Permanent Representative of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United Nations in Geneva, the first woman in the position.

At the end of 2017, Dalil was named President of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (Ottawa Treaty), which bans the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of anti-personnel mines. Afghanistan is one of the countries most affected by these weapons.

Since 2020, Dalil has been Director of the Special Programme on Primary Health Care for the World Health Organization. Since the Taliban's return to power in 2021, she has spoken out about "gender apartheid" and stressed the need for "clear and consistent" engagement with the regime in delivering humanitarian aid and seeking accountability for human rights violations.

Other activities International Gender Champions (IGC), Member

Awards and honours In 2012, Dalil was awarded a prize by the Vaccination World Union for her achievements in implementing country-wide vaccination. In 2014, she accepted a Resolve Award Special Mention from the Global Leaders Council for Reproductive Health recognising Afghanistan's efforts to prioritise reproductive, maternal and child health.

Selected publications

Personal life Dalil's native language is Uzbeki, and she also speaks Dari, Pashto, and English. Her husband is also a medical doctor, and they have three children.