Ban appoints new Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan; new leadership at UN Afghan mission

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Nicholas Haysom of South Africa as his Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan.

Mr. Haysom will succeed Haile Menkerios of South Africa, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his dedication and commitment.

A lawyer with a long international career focused on democratic governance, constitutional and electoral reforms, Mr. Haysom was and he remains for a few more weeks, the Head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) where he has served since 2014 as Head and Deputy from 2012 to 2014.

A UN spokesperson also announced that replacing Mr. Haysom as Special Representative in Afghanistan will be Tadamichi Yamamoto of Japan. Mr. Yamamoto has served as Deputy Special Representative in Afghanistan since 2014. Prior to working with the United Nations, Mr. Yamamoto has held several positions in the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

In turn, the new Deputy Special Representative in Afghanistan will be Pernille Dahler Kardel of Denmark. Ms. Kardel brings twenty-five years of experience in diplomacy, political affairs, international cooperation and economic development, spanning several continents. Most recently she served as Ambassador of Denmark to the Egypt.