UN: Nigerian Appointed Resident Coordinator In Turkey

With the consent of the host government, Babatunde A. Ahonsi, a Nigerian, has been named by UN Secretary-General António Guterres as the UN Resident Coordinator in Turkey.

Ahonsi has worked in international development for 26 years, both within and outside of the UN.

He oversaw and assisted the UN’s operational actions for development in Sierra Leone as the UN Resident Coordinator before taking on his present role.

He oversaw system-wide accountability on the ground for the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework while serving as the head of the UN country team.

He also coordinated UN support to Sierra Leone in its implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the UN Secretary General’s Prevention Agenda.

Prior to this, he served as UN Resident Coordinator in China from June to September 2020. In addition, he served as UNFPA Representative in China/Country Director for Mongolia from January 2017-June 2020, and as UNFPA representative in Ghana from 2014-2016.

Between 1997 and 2014, he held senior management positions with the Ford Foundation (covering West Africa) and Population Council (covering Nigeria) overseeing reproductive health, women’s empowerment, and youth development programmes and initiatives.

He had also lectured at federal universities in Ilorin, Calabar, and Lagos, Nigeria during the 1980s and 1990s.

Ahonsi holds a BSc (First Class Honors) degree in Sociology from the University of Lagos, Nigeria; and a Ph.D. in Population Studies from the London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London, England.