Ibrahim Thiaw is a Mauritianian public servant who has been serving as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) since 2019.[1]
Born in 1957 in Tékane, Mauritania, Thiaw holds an advanced degree in forestry and forest product techniques.[2]
Thiaw worked in his country's Ministry of Rural Development for 10 years before joining the World Conservation Union (IUCN), where he served 15 years holding different positions.[citation needed] He was President of the PanAfrican Archaeological Association from 2014 to 2018.[3]
Thiaw joined the United Nations in 2007 as Director of the Division of Environmental Policy Implementation (DEPI) at United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).[4] From 2013 to 2018, he was Deputy Executive Director of UNEP at the level of Assistant Secretary-General, under the leadership of successive Executive Directors Achim Steiner and Erik Solheim. He was appointed to this position by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on 2 August 2013.[5] In this capacity, he played a key role in shaping the organization's strategic vision, mid-term strategy and programme of work, and strengthened collaborations with Governments and other environmental governing bodies, including the United Nations Environmental Assembly.[6]
He also served the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as its interim head after Patricia Espinosa stepped down, and started his term on 17 July 2022.[7] He was succeeded in this position by Simon Stiell on 15 August that same year.[8]
Thiaw is married and has three children.
