UN chief names deputy head of UN Assistance Mission in Somalia
Xinhua, June 19, 2015 Adjust font size:
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Thursday announced the appointment of Peter de Clercq of the Netherlands as his deputy special representative for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), where he will also serve as UN resident coordinator and humanitarian coordinator.
De Clercq will also serve as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) resident representative in the horn of Africa country.
He will succeed Philippe Lazzarini of Switzerland, who will shortly leave his post to join the Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon (UNSCOL). "The secretary-general is grateful to Mr. Lazzarini for his dedication and service in Somalia," a UN spokesman told reporters here.
De Clercq brings to the position solid experience in managing political processes, security sector development, operations and emergency management, protection of civilians and rule of law, as well as mobilization and management of humanitarian and development assistance, the spokesman said.
His most recent assignment was that of UN deputy special representative of the secretary-general for the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH). Prior to that, he served as senior adviser to the special representative of the secretary-general for Somalia and deputy special representative for Somalia for the United Nations Political Office for Somalia.
In previous years, de Clercq served as the United Nations resident coordinator and humanitarian coordinator ad interim in Sudan and worked with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for 27 years, during which time he held various positions in its headquarters in Geneva and Budapest, as well as in field assignments in Sudan, Zimbabwe, Angola and Pakistan.
He was also seconded to the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and to UNDP in Sudan. Enditem