ECOSOC United Nations Economic and Social Counci : Secretary-General Appoints Toby Lanzer of United Kingdom Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres today announced the appointment of Toby Lanzer of the United Kingdom as his Deputy Special Representative for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), where he will also serve as United Nations Resident Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinator and Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The new Deputy Special Representative succeeds Mark Bowden of the United Kingdom, who will complete his assignment at the end of February, and to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his dedicated service.

Mr. Lanzer brings significant experience in development, humanitarian affairs and peacekeeping since first joining UNDP in 1992. His most recent positions included Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel, Deputy Special Representative, Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), and Chief of Staff with the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT). He also served with the United Nations in Georgia, Russian Federation and Switzerland.

Educated at the University of Oxford, as well as Columbia University and the University of New Hampshire, Mr. Lanzer holds a post-graduate certificate in forced migration, a master's degree in international affairs, with a specialization in economic and political development, and a bachelor's degree in history.

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* This supersedes Press Release SG/A/1362-BIO/4387-PKO/317 of 26 July 2012.