The recently appointed Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General (SRSG) for Central Africa and Head of the United Nations Regional Office for Central Africa (UNOCA), Abdou Abarry, arrived in Libreville on Friday, 9 September, to take up his duties. He thanked the Gabonese authorities and colleagues from the United Nations system for their warm welcome.

A career diplomat, Mr. Abarry, of Niger, served in various capacities with the administration of his country, including that of Ambassador to Belgium, accredited concurrently to Greece, Luxembourg and the Netherlands as well as to the United Nations Offices in Geneva and Vienna, the European Union Commission and the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States. 

At the time of his appointment on 28 July 2022, Mr. Abarry was serving as Permanent Representative of Niger to the United Nations in New York – a position he held since June 2019. At the regional level, he served as Special Representative of the Chairperson of the Union Commission African Union (AU) and Head of the AU Liaison Office in the Democratic Republic of Congo (2016 - 2019). He also headed the AU Liaison Office to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), in Abuja, Nigeria (2014 to 2016).

Mr. Abarry succeeds François Louncény Fall, who headed UNOCA from 1 November 2016 to 31 May 2022.