Nigerian Diplomat Ahunna Eziakonwa named UN Special Adviser on Africa

Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, has appointed an experienced diplomat and development expert from Nigeria, Ahunna Eziakonwa, as the next special adviser on Africa.

Ahunna will replace Cristina Duarte of Cabo Verde, who is leaving the post after her term at the organization. Expressing gratitude for the work of the outgoing special adviser, the United Nations said that Cristina Duarte was devoted to the cause of advancing the organization.

Ahunna Eziakonwa boasts more than 30 years of leadership experience with the United Nations.

Ahunna is currently UN Assistant Secretary-General, Assistant Administrator, and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa at the United Nations Development Programme. In this capacity, she supervises the activities of the organization in supporting 46 African nations as they strive to implement Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2063 of the African Union.

“Since 2018, she has helped shape UNDP’s strategic approach to economic and political development across the continent,” the statement added added.

Eziakonwa’s career is characterized by extensive experience in all areas of UN involvement in Africa.

She was appointed as UN Resident Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinator, and UNDP Resident Representative in three different countries – Ethiopia, Uganda, and Lesotho – where she coordinated humanitarian response, development programs and strategies, as well as political activities.

She was also a Chief of the Africa Section in UNOCHA New York, responsible for humanitarian activities in 15 African countries, as well as having key roles in Liberia and Sierra Leone during important times in those states.

At UN headquarters, she has been involved in peacekeeping, political analysis, and communication concerning UN activity in Africa, working with the UN Departments of Peacekeeping Operations, Political Affairs, and Public Information. Before joining the UN system, she held various positions in several civil society organizations in Africa.

She obtained a master’s degree in International Affairs specializing in African political and economic development at Columbia University, New York, USA, and a bachelor’s degree in Pedagogy, English and Literary Studies at the University of Benin, Nigeria.

Besides being multilingual in her mother tongue Igbo and English, she also speaks fluently Yoruba, and French.

(NAN)