Secretary-General appoints Pablo Ruiz Hiebra of Spain as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Cuba

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Pablo Ruiz Hiebra of Spain as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Cuba, with the host Government’s approval. He takes up his duties on 1 October.

Mr. Ruiz Hiebra has more than 20 years of experience in governance, development cooperation, crisis prevention and recovery, and peacebuilding, including as a manager or senior adviser in the United Nations system. Most recently, he served as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Uruguay, where he led and coordinated the United Nations country team to support national sustainable development priorities and strengthen partnerships across government, the United Nations system, and other stakeholders. Before that, he was Country Director for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Colombia, where he supported key aspects of implementing the peace process. He also served as a United Nations Senior Advisor on post-crisis recovery processes in Haiti, Lebanon and Sri Lanka, coordinating political initiatives and inter-agency programmes. Earlier in his United Nations career, he worked with UNDP’s Crisis Prevention and Recovery Office in Geneva, supporting humanitarian response efforts following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, and led regional governance and peacebuilding initiatives at the UNDP Regional Centre in Panama covering 20 countries.

Prior to joining the United Nations, Mr. Ruiz Hiebra worked with universities, chambers of commerce, research institutes and national non-governmental organizations.

Mr. Ruiz Hiebra holds a PhD in international economy and development and a degree in law from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Spain, as well as a degree in community law from the Université de Rouen in France.