Secretary-General Appoints Pablo Ruiz Hiebra of Spain United Nations Resident Coordinator in Uruguay

On 1 August, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Pablo Ruiz Hiebra of Spain as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Uruguay, with the host Government’s approval.

Mr. Ruiz Hiebra has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the areas of governance, crisis prevention and recovery.  At the United Nations, he recently served as Country Director for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Colombia, where he worked on key assignments, including the implementation of the peace process.  He was also a United Nations Senior Adviser in the post-crisis recovery processes in Haiti, Lebanon and Sri Lanka, coordinating a range of political initiatives and inter-agency projects.  At UNDP, he also facilitated support to the humanitarian response in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami in 2004 while working at the Crisis Prevention and Recovery Office in Geneva.  He also led regional projects and provided regional technical advice for 20 countries at the UNDP Regional Centre in Panama on issues related to governance and peacebuilding.

Prior to joining the United Nations, Mr. Ruiz Hiebra worked with universities, chambers of commerce, research institutes and national non-governmental organizations.

He holds a doctorate in international economy and a degree in law from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Spain, as well as a degree in community law from the Université de Rouen in France.