Biographical Note

Secretary-General Appoints Christian Manahl of Austria

 

Deputy Special Representative for Somalia

 

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Christian Manahl of Austria as his Deputy Special Representative for Somalia.

He brings to the position a wealth of experience in conflict prevention and management, governance, rule of law, strategic and contingency planning, institutional cooperation and the mobilization and coordination of assistance.

Mr. Manahl has been Director of the Political Affairs Division in the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) since June 2010, having served as acting Director from February 2007.  Between December 2005 and January 2007, he was Senior Political Adviser to the European Union Special Representative for the Sudan.  From May 2004 to November 2005, he was a member of the Policy Unit of the High Representative for the European Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy.

Between August 1999 and September 2003, Mr. Manahl was Head of the Regional Political Section of the European Union Commission delegation in Nairobi, Kenya, where he covered the Great Lakes region and the Horn of Africa, including Somalia.  In that capacity, he covered the Mbagathi Somali National Reconciliation Conference.  Earlier in his career, he was an Austrian diplomat.

Born in Bludenz, Austria, in 1960, Mr. Manahl earned a PhD in humanities from the University of Vienna, as well as post-graduate degrees in humanities and international law from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, respectively.

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For information media • not an official record