Biographical Note

Secretary-General Appoints Martin Mogwanja of Kenya as Deputy

 

Executive Director of United Nations Children’s Fund

 

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Martin Mogwanja, a Kenyan national, as Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).  Mr. Mogwanja will succeed Omar Abdi, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his outstanding contribution to UNICEF and commitment to the ideals of the Organization.

Before taking up his current post as UNICEF Representative in Pakistan in January 2007, Mr. Mogwanja had served as Representative in both Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.  In these capacities, he was responsible for the overall planning, coordination and implementation of a broad range of UNICEF programmes to improve the status of children and women.

Mr. Mogwanja joined UNICEF in August 1977 as an Assistant Project Officer in Nairobi, gaining a broad range of experience in a number of programme posts in Africa and New York before being appointed as Deputy Regional Director, West and Central Africa in 1994.

In addition to his current responsibilities as Representative in Pakistan, he was appointed to the role of United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in June 2009.

Mr. Mogwanja holds a Master of Science degree in development studies (1993) from Imperial College, United Kingdom, and a Bachelor of Science degree in control theory engineering (1977) from the University of Leeds, United Kingdom.

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