Former Norwegian, Somali officials appointed to UN children’s agency

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today named a former Norwegian development minister and a former senior Somali government official as deputy executive directors of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Hilde Johnson of Norway has been serving as Senior Adviser to the President of the African Development Bank since 2005. Immediately prior to that, she was Norway's Minister of International Development, a post she has held twice. She succeeds Rima Salah of Jordan.

Omar Abdi, a Somali-born Canadian citizen, has been serving as Director of UNICEF’s Middle East and North Africa Region since August last year. Before joining UNICEF in 1992, he held a number of senior positions in the Somali Government. He succeeds Toshiyuki Niwa of Japan.

Active in over 190 countries, UNICEF advocates for the protection of children's rights and helps meet their basic needs.