NEW PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF SOMALIA PRESENTS CREDENTIALS TO DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF UNOG

Yusuf Mohamed Ismail, the new Permanent Representative of Somalia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, today presented his credentials to Sergei Ordzhonikidze, the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva.

Prior to his appointment to Geneva by the Government of Somalia, he had been serving, since 2007, as the Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva on behalf of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia. From 2005 to 2007, he served as the Transitional Government’s Special Envoy to the European Union.

From 2004 to 2005, Mr. Mohamed Ismail was the Spokesperson of Abdullahi Yussuf Ahmed, President of the Republic of Somalia, and prior to that, from 2003 to 2004, had acted as Mr. Yussuf Ahmed's political adviser while the latter was the President of Puntland State. From 2002 to 2004, Mr. Mohamed Ismail also acted as the Puntland State of Somalia Representative to the European Union, and from 1998 to 2002, was the Puntland State of Somalia representative to Italy. Prior to 1998 Mr. Mohamed Ismail had a wide-ranging career spanning politics, government and journalism.

Mr. Mohamed Ismail graduated from the University of Bologna, Italy, in 1985 with a degree in political science, and attended Bologna University's graduate school of journalism the following year before embarking on a career in journalism.

Born on 15 July 1958, Mr. Mohamed Ismail is married with two children.

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For use of information media; not an official record
CR/08/13E