Islamabad, 23 January 2024 (TDI): Muhammad Yahya of Somalia was appointed as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Pakistan. He took up the charge of duties on 21st January. He will also serve as the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan.
The United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Guterres approved the appointment of Yahya as the UN Resident Coordinator in Pakistan. His appointment was confirmed with the approval of Government of Pakistan.
The newly appointed Resident Coordinator, Muhammad Yahya, has more than 20 years of experience in development and peacebuilding. Prior to his appointment, he served as the Resident Representative for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Nigeria.
In particular, during his tenure in Nigeria, he oversaw one of the UNDP’s largest country portfolios in Africa with presence in five out of six geopolitical zones in Nigeria.
Earlier than that he was working as the Coordinator for Africa Regional Programme for UNDP based in Addis Ababa. During his appointment there he was responsible for regional development initiatives in support of the African Union and Africa’s Regional Economic Communities.
Previously, Muhammad Yahya held positions with UNDP as post conflict recovery specialist supporting UN interventions in Afghanistan and Liberia. Furthermore, he was also coordinator for a UN joint initiative on natural resource management.
Prior to joining the United Nations, he worked as a senior peacebuilding adviser for the non-governmental organization International Alert.
Muhammad Yahya holds a master’s degree in violence, conflict and development. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in politics and history from the school of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.
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Before the appointment of Yahya, Julien Harneis was serving as the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan. During his assignment, he served in the country for four years, he worked tirelessly to support the country’s effort towards sustainable development and to help mitigate climate change.
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