The new UN Secretary-General António
Guterres yesterday announced the Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed
as his Deputy Secretary-General.
Guterres made the announcement through the spokesman of the Secretary-General, Mr. Stephane Dujarric.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
reported that Guterres also announced the duo of Ms. Maria Viotti of
Brazil and Ms. Kyung-wha Kang of the Republic of Korea into high-profile
positions at the UN.
“I am pleased to announce that I will be
appointing Mrs. Amina J. Mohammed of Nigeria as my Deputy
Secretary-General, and Ms. Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti of Brazil as my
Chef De Cabinet.
“I also intend to create the position of
Special Advisor on Policy, and to appoint Ms. Kyung-wha Kang of the
Republic of Korea to this new role.
“I am happy to count on the efforts of
these three highly competent women, whom I have chosen for their strong
backgrounds in global affairs, development, diplomacy, human rights and
humanitarian action.
“These appointments are the foundations
of my team, which I will continue to build, respecting my pledges on
gender parity and geographical diversity,” Guterres said.
Prior to her appointment as Minister of
Environment a year ago, Mrs. Mohammed had served as the UN Under
Secretary-General and Special Adviser to the outgoing Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon on Post-2015 Development Planning.
She was instrumental in bringing about the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the Sustainable Development Goals.
Before joining the UN, Mrs. Mohammed
worked for three successive administrations in Nigeria, serving as
Special Adviser on the Millennium Development Goals.
She provided advice on issues including poverty alleviation, public sector reforms and sustainable development, and coordinating poverty reduction interventions.
She provided advice on issues including poverty alleviation, public sector reforms and sustainable development, and coordinating poverty reduction interventions.
She was also an Adjunct Professor in
Development Practice at Columbia University, and served on numerous
international advisory boards and panels, including the UN
Secretary-General’s High-level Panel on Post-2015 Development Agenda.
Others included the Independent Expert
Advisory Group on the Data Revolution for Sustainable Development, and
the Global Development Program of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
She was also on the UN
Secretary-General’s Global Sustainability Panel, the African Women’s
Millennium Initiative, Girl Effect and the ActionAid International Right
to Education Project.
Born in 1961, and educated in Nigeria and the UK, Mrs. Mohammed is married and has six children.
Guterres had hinted on Monday, after he took the oath of office, that gender parity would be top of his agenda as the UN scribe.
Guterres is succeeding Ban, who will bow out on December 31, after a decade of two terms.
Guterres is succeeding Ban, who will bow out on December 31, after a decade of two terms.
Reacting to Mrs. Mohammed’s appointment,
President Muhammadu Buhari welcomed her elevation to the post of Deputy
Secretary-General of the UN.
A statement by his media aide, Mr. Garba
Shehu, said the president spoke with Guterres who called to inform him
(Buhari) of his decision to name Mrs. Mohammed as the Deputy
Secretary-General yesterday evening.
Shehu said Buhari used the opportunity to reiterate his support for Guterres and congratulated him on his upcoming tenure.
He said the president endorsed the excellent selection of Mrs. Mohammed. “By her appointment, Nigeria has been honoured,” said the president.
He said the president endorsed the excellent selection of Mrs. Mohammed. “By her appointment, Nigeria has been honoured,” said the president.
Shehu said Buhari thanked Mrs. Mohammed
for her untiring contributions to transform Nigeria and said he looked
forward to sustained collaboration between the UN and Nigeria.
He said he had no doubt that she would continue to make Nigeria proud at the global level.
He said he had no doubt that she would continue to make Nigeria proud at the global level.
The statement added: “It is expected
that the Minister of Environment will be transitioning to her new role
in March 2017. In the meantime, it is expected that she will continue to
lay strong foundations with various important ongoing initiatives
critical to the government’s success in the environment sector.
“These include, but not limited to
implementation of our Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under
the Paris Climate Agreement, the successful launch of the Sovereign
Green Bonds in 2017, the ongoing Ogoni clean-up and development of the
Great Green Wall.”
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