Philippe Lazzarini (born 1964) is a Swiss-Italian humanitarian who has served as Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) since 2020.[1]
Philippe Lazzarini | |
|---|---|
 Lazzarini (right) visiting a refugee settlement in West Beqaa, 2016 | |
| Commissioner-General of UNRWA | |
| Assumed office 18 March 2020 | |
| Secretary-General | António Guterres |
| Preceded by | Pierre Krähenbühl |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1964 (age 59–60) |
| Spouse | Antonia Mulvey |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | University of Neuchâtel (BA) University of Lausanne (MBA) |
| Occupation | Humanitarian |
From 2015 until 2020, Lazzarini served as Deputy UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon (UNSCOL), UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme in Lebanon. Prior to this, he was the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), where he also served as UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative. Before that Lazzarini held senior positions in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Early life and education edit
Lazzarini holds a Master in Business Administration from the Faculty of Business and Economics of the University of Lausanne and a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Neuchâtel.
Career edit
Lazzarini started his international career in 1989 when he joined the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and served as delegate in multiple duty stations, including Southern Sudan, Lebanon, Jordan and Gaza. From there Lazzarini went on to lead the ICRC operations in Bosnia, Angola and Rwanda. He also served as Deputy Head of the ICRC Communications Department. In September 1999, Lazzarini joined the Union Bancaire Privée in Geneva where he worked on promoting the corporate social responsibilities and ethical investment agenda of the Bank and as Head of the Marketing Department.
In 2003, Lazzarini joined the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) as Area Coordinator in Mossul, Iraq. From there he went on to serve as Head of Office for OCHA in Angola, Somalia, and in the occupied Palestinian territories. In 2010, he became the Deputy Director of the Coordination and Response Division for OCHA and in 2013 he was appointed,[2] under the leadership of Nicholas Kay, as the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Somalia. On 24 April 2015, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced[3] the Lazzarini's appointment as his Deputy Special Coordinator for Lebanon, where he also served as Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative, succeeding Ross Mountain; in this capacity, he worked under the leadership of successive Special Coordinators Sigrid Kaag (2015-2017), Pernille Dahler Kardel (2017-2019) and Ján Kubiš (2019-2020).
In 2020, UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced Lazzarini's appointment as new Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).[4]
In 2023, Lazzarini criticized the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.[5][6] He described the Gaza Strip as a "graveyard of a population trapped between war, siege and deprivation", saying that "We will not be able to say we did not know. History will ask why the world did not have the courage to act decisively and stop this hell on Earth."[7] On 9 February 2024, Lazzarini said that Israel blocked food for 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza.[8]
Personal life edit
Lazzarini is married and has four children. His wife, Antonia Mulvey, is a British lawyer and Founder and Executive Director of Legal Action Worldwide (LAW).
Publications and interviews edit
- Philippe Lazzarini, "We must prevent humanitarian aid from being used as a weapon of war", Los Angeles Times, 9 December 2023
- Philippe Lazzarini on HARDtalk with Stephen Sackur, 30 November 2023
- Philippe Lazzarini, "The carnage must stop. Time for a ceasefire in Gaza", The Washington Post, 8 November 2023
- Philippe Lazzarini, "I run the UN agency for Palestine Refugees. History will judge us all if there is no ceasefire in Gaza", The Guardian, 26 October 2023
- Philippe Lazzarini and Martin Griffiths, "Humanity must prevail in Gaza", The Financial Times, 17 October 2023
- "Time to revitalize Lebanon’s economy", The Daily Star (Lebanon) 17 June 2016
- "Les leçons apprises du Liban au Sommet mondial sur l’action humanitaire", L'Orient-Le Jour, 25 April 2016
- "Pulling Lebanon back from the edge of the crisis", The Daily Star (Lebanon), 28 January 2016
- "Lebanon’s silent heroes", The Daily Star (Lebanon), 19 August 2015
- Lazzarini to place Lebanon's needs as top priority on global agenda, As-Safir, 15 January 2016
- Lazzarini interview with Annahar Newspaper, 30 September 2015
- Somalia: Early warning should trigger early action (VIDEO), United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 22 October 2014
- United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
References edit
- ^ "Secretary-General Appoints Philippe Lazzarini of Switzerland Commissioner-General, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugee in Near East | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases". press.un.org. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ "Secretary-General Appoints Philippe Lazzarini of Switzerland as Deputy Special Representative, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Somalia". www.un.org. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ "Secretary-General Appoints Philippe Lazzarini of Switzerland as Deputy Special Coordinator for Lebanon". www.un.org. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ "Secretary-General Appoints Philippe Lazzarini of Switzerland Commissioner-General, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugee in Near East | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases". press.un.org. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ "UNRWA Chief: Gaza Cease-Fire Matter of Life and Death for Millions". VOA News. 30 October 2023.
- ^ "Israel's Fuel Blockade is Strangling Gaza". The Mother Jones. 18 November 2023.
- ^ "Gaza becoming 'graveyard' for trapped population: UNRWA head". Anadolu Agency. 26 October 2023.
- ^ "Israel is holding up food for 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza, the main UN aid agency there says". ABC News. 9 February 2024.
External links edit
Media related to Philippe Lazzarini at Wikimedia Commons