The United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, on Friday announced the appointment of Ahunna Eziakonwa of Nigeria as Special Adviser on Africa.
She succeeds Cristina Duarte of Cabo Verde, whom, according to a statement by the UN, Guterres “is grateful for her commitment and dedicated service to the organization.”
Eziakonwa brings nearly three decades of United Nations leadership experience to her new role.
In her current role as UN Assistant Secretary-General, Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa at the United Nations Development Programme, she oversees the organisation’s support to 46 African countries in pursuing Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
“Since 2018, she has helped shape UNDP’s strategic approach to economic and political development across the continent,” the statement added.
Eziakonwa’s experience spans the full breadth of UN work in Africa.
She has served as UN Resident Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinator, and UNDP Resident Representative in three countries — Ethiopia, Uganda, and Lesotho — where she coordinated humanitarian action, development strategy, and political engagement.
As Chief of the Africa Section at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) in New York, she managed humanitarian operations across 15 African countries and held senior posts in Liberia and Sierra Leone during critical periods in those nations.
At UN Headquarters, she contributed to peacekeeping, political analysis, and strategic communications relating to UN engagement in Africa, working with the UN Departments of Peacekeeping Operations, Political Affairs, and Public Information. Prior to joining the UN, she held positions in several African civil society organizations
Eziakonwa holds a Master’s degree in International Affairs, with a focus on African economic and political development, from Columbia University, New York, USA, and a Bachelor of Arts in Pedagogy, English and Literary Studies from the University of Benin, Nigeria.
In addition to her native Igbo and English, she speaks fluent Yoruba and has a working knowledge of French.
