Permanent Observer of Economic Community of West African States Pays Courtesy Call on Secretary-General

(Based on information provided by the Protocol and Liaison Service)

The new Permanent Observer of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to the United Nations, Mahama Kappiah, paid a courtesy call on UN Secretary-General António Guterres today.

Mr. Kappiah brings to the position more than 25 years of experience on issues related to energy, environment, climate change and sustainable development.  Before his latest appointment, he served as Executive Director of the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, between 2010 and 2020.  He also headed the bloc’s Energy Division, where he supported the creation of the West African Power Pool and the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulation Authority.

From 1992 to 2004, Mr. Kappiah worked in the Planning and Development Department of Ghana’s Volta River Authority.  In 2017, he was named African Energy Leader of the Year and received the Green Future Leadership Award.

Mr. Kappiah holds a master’s degree in electromechanical engineering from the Kharkov Polytechnic Institute in Kharkov, Ukraine.