Addis Ababa, 20 December 2012 : African Union Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon announced today the appointment ofMr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas of Ghana as their Joint Special Representative for Darfur, Head of the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID). His responsibilities include those of the AU-UN Joint Chief Mediator.

Mr. Chambas replaces Mr. Ibrahim Gambari of Nigeria. The African Union Commission Chairperson and the Secretary-General would like to take this opportunity to reiterate their deep appreciation to Mr. Gambari for his dedicated service during his tenure with UNAMID.

Mr. Chambas brings to this position extensive experience afterlong and distinguished career in both international and governmental fora, most recently serving as the Secretary General of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP). Prior to this, Mr. Chambas was the President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) from 2007 to 2009, and the Executive Secretary of ECOWAS from 2002 to 2007.

Mr. Chambas was a Member of Parliament and notably served in 1987 as Deputy Foreign Secretary of Ghana. He has also served as the Deputy Ministerof Education in charge of Tertiary Education from 1997 to 2000. Prior to that, he was involved in the mediation efforts in Liberia between 1991 and 1996.

Born in Ghana in 1950, Mr. Chambas holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Ghana, Masters degree and PhD from Cornell University and a law degree from Case Western Reserve University.

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