The 93-year-old president of Zimbabwe is having eye problems. So says his spokesman, George Charamba, who tells local media that he feels “very, very pained” when he hears reports that Robert Mugabe, the world’s oldest head of state, is falling asleep during conferences. 
 
 “At 93, there is something that happens to the eyes and the president cannot suffer bright lights If you look at his poise, he looks down, avoids direct lighting,” Charamba reportedly told CapiTalk, a radio station in Harare, in an interview about Mugabe’s recent medical trip to Singapore. 
 
 According to the state-owned daily newspaper The Herald, the spokesman compared Mugabe’s condition to eye troubles suffered by Nelson Mandela. The former South African president was reported to have been highly sensitive to flashlight. “In the case of Mandela, if you remember, you were not allowed to even use flashes whenever he was in the room,” Charamba said. “That is what happens at 93, and Mandela, I do not think lived as long as the president did. Let us disabuse ourselves.” Mandela died in 2013 at the age of 95. 
 
 In any case, the photographic evidence that shows Mugabe sleeping through conferences in Africa and across the world are nothing new. Some date back more than a decade, to when Mugabe would have been in his early 80s. 
 
 Here he is closing his eyes during the Africa Union meeting in Sirte, Libya, in July 2005. 
 
 At the Africa Union meeting in Sirte, Libya, in July 2005. (Reuters/Radu Sigheti) 
 
 Later that year, he looked to be napping during the opening ceremony of the Africa-France summit in Bamako, Mali. (To his left is Omar Bongo, then-president of Gabon, who also seems to have had trouble keeping his eyes open during the meeting.) 
 
 Bongo and Mugabe at the Africa-France summit in Bamako, Mali, in December 2005. (Reuters/Luc Gnago) 
 
 Mugabe’s closed eyes continued to be a familiar sight to photographers in subsequent years. 
 
 At a plenary session for the Africa-EU Summit in Tripoli, Libya, in November 2010. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert) 
 
 Mugabe’s recent health trips have been a source of concern in Zimbabwe, which is preparing for elections next year in which Mugabe is expected to run. Critics have questioned Mugabe’s fitness to rule the southern Africa nation, especially at a time when the country’s economy is in free-fall, with Zimbabweans desperate for cash sleeping outside banks. But Mugabe refutes the notion that his country is a fragile state, and refers to Zimbabwe as “one of the most highly developed countries in Africa.” 
 
 Sign up for the Quartz Africa Weekly Brief — the most important and interesting news from across the continent, in your inbox. ||||| Image copyright AFP Image caption Robert Mugabe's eyes are sensitive to bright lights, his spokesman said 
 
 Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe is not asleep when he closes his eyes for long periods during meetings but is resting his eyes, his spokesman says. 
 
 "The president cannot suffer bright lights," George Charamba was quoted as saying by the state-run Herald newspaper. 
 
 Mr Mugabe, 93, has been seen apparently sleeping at several events, leading to speculation about his fitness. 
 
 He intends to stand in presidential elections next year. 
 
 The president is currently receiving specialised medical treatment for his eyes in Singapore. 
 
 Africa Live: More on this and other stories 
 
 Mr Mugabe most recently appeared to fall asleep during a discussion panel about "fragile states" at a World Economic Forum meeting in South Africa earlier this month. 
 
 There he stated that Zimbabwe was 'one of the most developed countries in Africa' 
 
 "I feel like a failure when there is this reading that the president is sleeping in conferences - no," Mr Charamba said. 
 
 He then compared Mr Mugabe to the anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela, whose eyes were affected by years of working in a limestone quarry while imprisoned on Robben Island. 
 
 "You were not allowed to even use flashes whenever he was in the room," Mr Charamba said. ||||| This article is over 1 year old 
 
 Decision will be re-evaluated after appointment of Zimbabwean despot provokes global anger 
 
 The head of the World Health Organization has said he is rethinking his decision to name Zimbabwe’s president, Robert Mugabe, as a goodwill ambassador after the move provoked global outrage. 
 
 Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the UN health agency, had this week asked Zimbabwe’s 93-year-old authoritarian leader to serve in the role to help tackle non-communicable diseases such as heart attacks, strokes and asthma across Africa. 
 
 The decision triggered confusion and anger among WHO member states and activists who noted that Zimbabwe’s health care system, like many of its public services, has collapsed under Mugabe’s regime. 
 
 “I’m listening. I hear your concerns. Rethinking the approach in light of WHO values. I will issue a statement as soon as possible,” Tedros, a former Ethiopian health minister, tweeted on Saturday night. 
 
 Earlier in the day the UK government criticised the WHO’s decision as “surprising and disappointing”. A Downing Street spokesman said British diplomats had raised serious concerns with Tedros. 
 
 A UK government spokesman said the WHO decision was at odds with US and EU sanctions against Mugabe. “Although Mugabe will not have an executive role, his appointment risks overshadowing the work undertaken globally by the WHO on non-communicable diseases,” he said. 
 
 The US state department said: “This appointment clearly contradicts the United Nations ideals of respect for human rights and human dignity.” 
 
 And the Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, said he thought Mugabe’s appointment “was a bad April Fool’s joke”. 
 
 
 
 'The president sleeps with one eye open': Mugabe reshuffles as power games begin Read more 
 
 Mugabe was in Uruguay for the announcement by Tedros, the former Ethiopian health minister who was elected as the WHO’s first director general from Africa this year after defeating the British candidate, David Nabarro, in three close rounds of voting. 
 
 Tedros said he was “honoured” to announce that Mugabe had agreed to serve as a goodwill ambassador on non-communicable diseases for Africa. He hailed Zimbabwe as “a country that places universal health coverage and health promotion at the centre of its policies to provide healthcare to all”. 
 
 The choice of Mugabe for the role has also angered opposition parties in Zimbabwe and human rights campaigners who accuse the leader of violent repression, election rigging and presiding over the country’s economic ruin. 
 
 
 
 Iain Levine, a programme director at Human Rights Watch, tweeted: 
 
 
 
 Iain Levine (@iainlevine) Given Mugabe's appalling human rights record, calling him a Goodwill Ambassador for anything embarrasses @WHO and @DrTedros https://t.co/fsqDSraWc9 
 
 The main opposition party in Zimbabwe, MDC, described the appointment as “laughable”. “The Zimbabwe health delivery system is in a shambolic state. It is an insult,” the spokesman Obert Gutu said. 
 
 “Mugabe trashed our health delivery system. He and his family go outside of the country for treatment in Singapore after he allowed our public hospitals to collapse.” 
 
 Grace Mugabe denies plotting to poison rival for Zimbabwe presidency Read more 
 
 Mugabe is in increasingly fragile health and makes regular trips abroad for medical treatment. 
 
 Zimbabwe’s state-run Herald newspaper reported the appointment under the headline “New feather in President’s cap”. It said Mugabe had told the WHO conference in Montevideo on Wednesday that Zimbabwe had developed a national policy on non-communicable diseases, and that he had called for more funds for developing nations. 
 
 According to the WHO, non-communicable diseases are by far the world’s leading cause of death, killing more than 36 million people a year. 
 
 UN agencies such as the WHO, UNHCR and Unesco all appoint goodwill ambassadors to highlight specific causes and often to draw publicity. 
 
 Unicef ambassadors include the singer Katy Perry and the tennis player Serena Williams.
– Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has become well-known for appearing to sleep through conferences and meetings, but his spokesperson insists the 93-year-old is not actually asleep when he's pictured in repose. "At 93, there is something that happens to the eyes and the president cannot suffer bright lights," the rep explained to a local radio station, per Quartz. "If you look at his poise, he looks down, avoids direct lighting." The aide noted that Nelson Mandela suffered from a similar problem and that photographers were not allowed to use camera flashes around him. Quartz has a series of photographs showing Mugabe "not sleeping" that date back more than a decade. Per the BBC, Mugabe is reportedly getting medical treatment for his eyes in Singapore. (Mugabe's wife says he should still lead the country even after he's dead.)