DUSHANBE, 06.01.2017. /NIAT «Khovar»/. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced Thursday the appointment of Ursula Mueller of Germany as Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

According to a UN press release, Meuller will succeed Kyung-wha Kang of the Republic of Korea, who is currently serving as Chief of the Transition Team in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General.

Mueller has over 30 years of experience in international affairs, global issues and development financing. She has been Executive Director of the World Bank’s Group since September 2014, responsible for a range of issues including strategy, policy, budget and the approval of programs worth 62 billion U.S.dollars in 2016. She has consistently worked to foster close cooperation between the World Bank and the United Nations, according to the press release.

Prior to this role, Mueller served as Director-General in Germany’s Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (2012-2014), and as Deputy Director-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2010-2012).  She was Germany’s Chargée d’Affaires in Reykjavik (2010) and coordinated a taskforce in the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs to respond to the global Financial Crisis in (2009-2010).