Secretary-General Appoints Indrika Ratwatte of Sri Lanka Deputy Special Representative, Resident Coordinator for Afghanistan

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced today the appointment of Indrika Ratwatte of Sri Lanka as his new Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and Resident Coordinator in Afghanistan.   Mr. Ratwatte will also serve as the Humanitarian Coordinator.

Mr. Ratwatte succeeds Ramiz Alakbarov of Azerbaijan, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his dedicated service.   The Secretary-General also recognizes the service of Daniel Endres as ad-interim Deputy Special Representative, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator.

Mr. Ratwatte brings over 30 years of experience in humanitarian affairs and protection in complex and crisis settings, including over 14 years of working on Afghanistan and regional issues.   He started his career with the United Nations in 1992, with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and continued his career with the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in 1993.   His most recent positions have included Director of the UNHCR Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, where he previously also served as Deputy, and UNHCR Representative in Pakistan.  He served with UNHCR as Deputy Representative in the United Republic of Tanzania and Pakistan, along with prior assignments in Thailand, Croatia, China, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Mr. Ratwatte holds a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University, United States, and a bachelor’s degree in English and sociology from the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka.   He is also an attorney-at-law from Sri Lanka Law College.