United Nations: Lakshmi Puri of India
has been appointed to the prestigious position of Assistant
Secretary-General for Intergovernmental Support and Strategic
Partnerships for UN Women.
Puri will be responsible for the leadership and
management of the Bureau supporting intergovernmental bodies,
United Nations coordination and external relations, according
to the UN.
She will also serve as one of the two deputies to the
Executive Director of UN Women, Michelle Bachelet.
Martin Nesirky, UN spokesperson, said that these
appointments were based on the recommendations of Bachelet.
Puri served in the Indian Foreign Service for 28 years
where she held various posts including as Ambassador of India
to Hungary and also served in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1999
to 2002.
Puri joined the United Nations in 2002 as the Director
of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD) Division of International Trade in Goods, Services
and Commodities from 2002 to 2007.
From 2007 to 2009, she served as UNCTAD`s Acting
Deputy Secretary-General providing strategic direction and
oversight to the organisation.
Since 2009 she has been Director at the Office of the
High Representative for the Least Developed Countries,
Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing
States.
Puri is married to India`s envoy to the UN, Hardeep
Singh Puri, and has two daughters.
PTI
