Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Ibrahim Thiaw, will act as the head of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) until a new Executive Secretary is appointed for the UN climate change-focused body.
Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, on Tuesday, June 21, 2022, designated the Mauritanian to be the Acting Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, effective July 17, 2022.
Mexican diplomat, Patricia Espinosa, is stepping down as head of UNFCCC in July after a six-year stint.
In a statement he released on the development, Thiaw said: “I am confident that, together with Deputy Executive Secretary Sarmad Ovais and the UNFCCC senior management, the continuity will be uninterrupted during this transitional period to deliver on the ambitious agenda ahead of UNFCCC COP27.
“I also remain committed to ensuring that there will be no disruption in the dispensing of my functions as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and, particularly, the delivery of the mandate the UNCCD Parties have entrusted me with at COP15.
“I look forward to working with the Secretary-General and UNFCCC Parties to facilitate a smooth transition to the next UNFCCC leadership and extend my thanks to the UNCCD COP15 President, the Bureau and staff for the willingness to share my time with our sister Convention.”
