Mr Michel Sidibe appointed UNAIDS Executive Director.

[Guest guest]

Mr Michel Sidibe appointed UNAIDS Executive Director.

Congratulations Mr Michel Sidibe

Geneva, 1 December, 2008 - On World AIDS Day the United Nations

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Mr Michel Sidib¨¦ as the

next Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on

HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

Congratulating Mr Sidib¨¦ on his appointment, outgoing Executive

Director Dr. Piot said, " The leadership of UNAIDS is in very

capable hands. UNAIDS has a vital role to play in sustaining the

progress made in the global response on AIDS. "

Accepting the appointment Mr Sidibe said, " I am indeed honoured

to serve UNAIDS. The AIDS epidemic is not over in any part of the

world.

We have to ensure that there is strong and long term leadership and

financial commitment to respond to AIDS that is grounded in evidence

and human rights. I also look forward to working within the UN System

and with partners from all corners of the world. "

Mr Sidib¨¦ currently serves as UNAIDS' Deputy Executive Director

¨C Programmes and Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations.

He brings 27 yeas of experience in international public health,

development, and AIDS. With more than 20 years of service in the

United Nations, he has worked for UNAIDS in Geneva since 2001 and

with UNICEF in New York and in countries in Africa.

He has been the driving force behind the promoting Universal Access to

HIV prevention, treatment, care and support. As co-chair of the Global

Task Team on improving AIDS coordination among multilateral donors and

international donors, he led the effort to align multilateral

contributions in support of national programmes and systems. Mr

Sidib¨¦ has also served to advance the process of UN reform and

strengthen partnerships between civil society, governments and people

living with HIV

Michel Sidib¨¦ began his career in global health almost 30 years ago

when he became concerned with the health and welfare of the nomadic

Tuareg people in the Timbuktu region of his native Mali.

What began as a modest consulting role with Mali's Bureau of African

Applied Research evolved into a position as country director for the

international development federation Terre des Hommes. There he

helped to establish some of Mali's first programmes for resettlement,

regional development and primary health care.

In 1987 UNICEF recruited Mr Sidib¨¦ to work in the Democratic Republic

of Congo, commencing over 20 years of service with the United Nations.

From there he moved to UNICEF Headquarters, where he oversaw

programmes spanning 10 francophone African countries. He later served

as UNICEF Country Representative in Swaziland, Burundi, and Uganda.

In 2001, Mr Sidib¨¦ joined UNAIDS as Director of Country and Regional

Support, overseeing a reform effort that is recognized as having

transformed UNAIDS into a more focused, efficient and effective joint

programme for delivering country-level results.

Mr Sidib¨¦ was appointed in 2007 to UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director

of Programmes and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations.

In this capacity, he manages more than 70 percent of UNAIDS financial

and human resources and leads UNAIDS' seven regional support teams and

81 country offices.

Over his career, Mr Sidib¨¦ has personally engaged key world leaders

in working toward sustainable and strategic responses to AIDS. He was

instrumental to the development of the first-ever Network of People

Living with HIV in Burundi, and continues to actively support the

meaningful involvement of people living with and affected by HIV in

all aspects of the response.

His other significant career achievements include pioneering the first

movement for girls' education in Africa, managing an immunization

program for 30 million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo,

securing a humanitarian corridor for providing life-saving medication

during the aid embargo in Burundi, negotiating the successful release

and rehabilitation of child soldiers from Eastern Congo, and convening

one of the first agreements on price reductions for antiretroviral

drugs in Africa.

Born in 1952, Mr Sidibe is a citizen of Mali. He holds advanced

academic degrees in economics, international development and social

planning. He is fluent in English and French, and speaks a number of

African languages. He is married with four children

http://www.unaids.org/

For more information contact: UNAIDS ©¦ Mahesh Mahalingam ©¦ + 41 22

791 4918