UN Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Mr Annadif Saleh of Chad as his new Special Representative for West Africa and the Sahel.
Saleh, 64, who once served as Chad’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, will double as Head of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS).
He succeeds Mohamed Chambas of Ghana, who held the position for six years and six months.
Guterres’ office said in a statement on Friday that he was grateful to Chambas for his “dedicated service and effective leadership at the helm of UNOWAS”.
Saleh brings to the position “extensive national and international experience”, having participated in several peace processes in Africa, including in Niger, the Central African Republic and Sudan.
He has served as Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Mali and Head of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) since 2015.
According to the statement, he was the African Union Special Representative and Head of the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) between 2012 and 2014.
The new UN envoy also served as Chief of Staff to the President of Chad (2004-2006) and Secretary-General to the Presidency (2010-2012).
Saleh also served as Permanent Representative of the African Union Commission to the European Union (2006-2010).
“He holds an engineering degree in telecommunications from the Polytechnic School of Madagascar and is fluent in English, French and Arabic,” the statement said.
NAN
