The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Aisa Kirabo Kacyira as the head of the United Nations Support Office in Somalia, his office announced on Thursday, February 23.

Kacyira replaces Australia's Lisa Filipetto, to whom Guterres expressed his gratitude, citing her dedication and effective leadership during her term in office.

Kacyira serves as Rwanda's high commissioner to Ghana and non-resident representative to Benin, Togo, Sierra Leone, Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia.

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She boasts of more than 30 years of experience in a multi-faceted career varying from diplomacy, community and political engagement, as well as in leadership in development and humanitarian assistance, at local, national and international levels.

Prior to her current position, Kacyira served in various high ranked positions including as Governor of the Eastern Province as well as Mayor of City of Kigali.

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She has also previously served as Member of Parliament and actively participated in Parliament’s legislative and oversight functions, in addition to community mobilization.

In addition to her political and diplomatic roles, Kacyira has held several positions in development and humanitarian assistance, such as Deputy Executive Director with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) from and also in programme and project management with the Ministry of Agriculture.

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She holds a Master of Veterinary Science in Animal Production and Economics from James Cook University in Australia, and a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine from Makerere University in Uganda.