Geneva, 20 June 2022 (TDI): Francesco Rocca was re-elected as the President of The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) at the 23rd General Assembly held on the 19th of June.
The IFRC General Assembly has elected @FrancescoRocca as our President for the next four years.
Congratulations, Mr President! #RCRC22 pic.twitter.com/LeJffkai35
— IFRC (@ifrc) June 19, 2022
The IFRC held its 23rd General Assembly in Geneva and re-elected Rocca for a 4-year term. The representatives of 192 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies made the decision.
Following his re-election, Rocca stated, “We are living in extremely turbulent times. The dangerous roads of global economic instability, food shortages, the climate crisis, and health emergencies are converging to create an unprecedented moment of risk for the world.”
Furthermore, he said he is proud to take the challenge with 14 million Red Cross Crescent volunteers who at that moment were doing their utmost to serve their local communities.
Rocca’s Professional Career
Francesco Rocca is a Lawyer by profession and began his career fighting against organized crime. He started volunteering in the late 1980s with asylum seekers and refugees in Italy.
Rocca later joined the Italian Red Cross in 2007 and later became the National President in 2013. Subsequently, he served at IFRC as governing board member and Vice-President for Europe. During the ceremony, other officials, including new vice presidents and 20 governing board members, represented each of IFRC’s geographic regions.
Chiefly, he noted some important areas he would like to work on in his new term of office. These include increasing the humanitarian impact of the climate crisis, minimizing growth inequalities, support, and protection of migrants.
He also encouraged the international community to prioritize Global solidarity and put it into action. He stated that political will, open dialogue, and decisions made multilaterally, turn everything into a possibility.
