Our Team in Kenya

Rainer has served as Director of UNOPS Kenya Multi Country office (KMCO) since 2014 and was previously Adviser for Risk Reduction and Recovery in UNOPS Head Quarters in Copenhagen. He first worked with the UN in Sri Lanka, going on to other agencies in conflict, disaster and emergency operations in Afghanistan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Philippines, Haiti, Maldives, Ethiopia, Somalia and South Sudan. He a Magister Juris/LLM from the Universities of Salzburg and Vienna and a Master’s in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University of London.

Before joining UNISDR Regional Office for Africa, Mr. Abbashar headed the organization’s Regional Office for Arab States in Cairo, Egypt. Mr Abbashar began his United Nations career as a Programme Officer with the UNDP Emergency Unit in Sudan dealing with Operation Lifeline Sudan in the early 1990’s. Later he became Field Coordinator in the Department of Humanitarian Affairs during the Liberian war after which he was assigned as Deputy Head of OCHA in Sierra Leone. He joined OCHA’s headquarters in New York in 2000 as a Humanitarian Affairs Officer focusing on inter-governmental matters related to the Security Council, the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council.

Mr. Anders Thomsen has more than 25 years of experience in Development and Humanitarian Assistance, with a commitment to promoting Human Rights, Reproductive Health, and Poverty Reduction. He is the UNFPA Representative to Kenya from April 2022. Prior to his appointment to Kenya, he served for three years as UNFPA Representative to Somalia and five years as the UNFPA Representative to Palestine. He focused on addressing humanitarian and development challenges related to population dynamics, youth, reproductive health, and combatting gender-based violence. Preceding that, Mr. Anders Thomsen was the UNFPA Deputy Representative for India and Bhutan.

Prior to his assignment in India, he worked at UNDP’s Multi-Donor Trust Fund Office, where he was Senior Portfolio Manager for the 700 million-dollar MDG Achievement Fund. At the same time, he led the development of a new system for the administration of Multi-Donor and Multi-Agency Trust Funds in the UN system. He has previously served as Resource Mobilization Specialist for UNFPA and as Programme Specialist in the Asia Pacific Division, where he covered South-East Asia during the Indian Ocean Tsunami crisis. Before joining UNFPA he spent six years with UNOPS both at Headquarters and in Eastern/Southern Africa where he focused on nationally implemented loans and grants from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Earlier, Mr. Thomsen worked for several companies in the Private Sector. Mr. Thomsen has been stationed in various countries across three continents: Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

He holds a double major in International Development Studies and Business Administration. He is a national of Denmark.

Anna Mutavati is a human rights and social development expert with 20 years of experience in leadership and management, human rights, and gender equality programming. A lawyer by profession, Anna holds a Masters’ Degree in Women’s Law from the Southern and Eastern Regional Centre for Women’s Law (SEARCWL), University of Zimbabwe and a Degree in Law from the University of Zimbabwe. Prior to joining UN Women in Kenya, Anna was Deputy Representative and Head of Programmes at UN Women in Uganda for five years.

Mr. Anthony Ngororano, is the Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kenya from 11th July 2022.

Prior to this appointment, he held various positions. He has served as the UNDP Resident Representative in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania (from May 2019), Chief, Executive Board Branch in the Office Executive Director, at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in New York, USA (from January 2018), Country Representative, UN Women in Haiti (2015-2018), Country Representative a.i. in Malawi and Chief, Africa Section at UN Women in New York, USA (2013-2015), Senior Economic Adviser to the Prime Minister of Rwanda at the rank of Permanent Secretary (2011- 2013), Country Programme Adviser with UNDP in the Regional Bureau for Africa (RBA) in New York (2009 -2011).

In his career, Anthony has led teams and held a range of policy and programme roles with UNDP in Nigeria, Zambia, and Rwanda (from 2004). He began his career as an Economist with Uganda’s Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and later as the Regional Management Associate with Citigroup in Kenya and Tanzania.
Anthony holds Masters's degrees in Development Economics and International Relations from the University of East Anglia and the University of Sussex respectively. He also has an MA (Honours) degree in Economics from the University of Edinburgh.

Mrs Carla Mucavi is the FAO Representative to Kenya as of November 1, 2020. Prior to this appointment, Mrs Mucavi worked as Director of FAO Liaison Office in New York from 2015. In this capacity,she represented the Organisation at the United Nations General Assembly, Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), as well as related Committees, functional Commissions, and Subsidiary Bodies, ensuring that FAO mandate and strategic priorities remain at the centre of the Global Agenda, due to its relevance for the attainment of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development. Mrs Mucavi is a career diplomat having served in different functions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Mozambique between 1989 and 2015. This includes the Division for International Organizations and Conferences; Division for Europe and North America and Latin America; as Deputy Director of State Protocol; and as Chief of Cabinet of the Ministerfor Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. She also served at the Embassy of Mozambique in Ethiopia. Between 2007 and 2015 she was Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Mozambique to Italy, Greece and Malta, and Permanent Representative to FAO, WFP and IFAD. A Mozambique national, Mrs Mucavi holds a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations from the Institute for Higher Studies in International Relations, Mozambique and a Master’s Degree in Cooperation and Development Planning from the University La Sapienza, Italy.

Caroline van Buren took up her function as UNHCR Kenya Representative in April 2022. Ms. van Buren joined UNHCR in 1993 in Geneva, Switzerland. Most recently, she held the position of UNHCR Representative in Afghanistan, and prior to that, UNHCR Representative in Somalia. She has also held various other positions with UNHCR in the USA (Washington), Bosnia, Liberia, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Hungary and Slovenia.

In 1998 and from 2004 to 2009, Ms. van Buren was on loan from UNHCR to the United Nations Department of Peace Keeping Operations in Sierra Leone and in Liberia, where she worked in the Rule of Law Division.

Ms. van Buren holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley (1988) and a Juris Doctor Degree from Boston University School of Law (1991). She is a national of Suriname and is married to Joseph F. Brent.

Capt. Muli joined the IMO from Maritime Administration in Kenya where his last appointment was the head of maritime safety. He previously served the disciplined forces where he served in different capacities, including as command of the Kenya Navy Ships. Capt. Muli holds a Master’s Degree in Maritime Transport from the World Maritime University, Malmo, Sweden and he is a holder of Master Mariner Certificate of Competency.

Frank Turyatunga is the Acting Director and Regional Representative of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Africa Office. Prior to this appointment, Frank was the Deputy Director of the same office where he supervised delivery of all the organisation’s programmes and projects in Africa. He has an enormous wealth of environmental programme and policy implementation experience having served as Regional Coordinator for Africa, Early Warning and Assessment Sub Programme, and previously with GRID-Arendal, a UNEP Collaborating Centre in Norway where he coordinated its Africa Programme. Frank's first assignment at UNEP was as a Programme Officer with its Disaster Management Branch based in Nairobi, Kenya and later Geneva, Switzerland.

Before joining the United Nations, Frank worked as an environmental expert within the Government of Uganda during which he was part of a team mandated to set up the Ministry of Environment Projection and later the establishment of the National Environmental Management Authority. Following this, he worked at the local level as Chief of Party for a USAID funded project on Environmental Protection and Economic Development. During this period, he led a process for the resettlement of communities which had encroached on the Karuma Wildlife Reserve which is part of the Uganda Murchison falls National Park system.

Frank is a Ugandan Citizen who holds an MSc in Natural Resource Management from Edinburgh University, a BSc in Forestry from Makerere University and a Diploma in Geographical Information Systems and Remote Sensing from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne.

Gemma Connell has been heads of the UN Office for the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Regional Office for Southern and Eastern Africa since July 2017, overseeing service to 25 countries. She has worked with OCHA in South Sudan, Syria, Nigeria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Myanmar, the Philippines and Ukraine. Prior to joining OCHA, Gemma worked with the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza, where she organised – and participated in – the first ever marathon. Gemma began her career working on women’s rights and human rights with the UN and several small NGOs.

Ms. Kawira Bucyana assumed her role as the Representative, ad interim, to Kenya, Comoros, Eritrea, Seychelles and South Sudan (UR a.i) in Nairobi on 18 September 2019. Prior to this, Ms Bucyana served as an Industrial Development Officer in UNIDO, Vienna and Officer in Charge of UNIDO Office South Sudan.

As the UR a.i, she leads the Kenya Office in the promotion of Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development (ISID) to harness the full potential of industry’s contribution to the achievement of sustainable development, and lasting prosperity for all. She will guide the roll out of the Programme for Country Partnerships (PCP) for Kenya that is UNIDO’s innovative model for accelerating inclusive and sustainable industrial development in Member States. The PCP is aligned with the national development agenda, is focused on sectors with high growth potential, rests on a multi-stakeholder partnership led by the host government, builds synergies with ongoing government and partner interventions relevant to industrial development to support a country in achieving its industrial development goals. The PCP is also designed to leverage additional investment in selected priority sectors and facilitates the mobilization of partners and resources to achieve larger development impact. The PCP serves to operationalize UNIDO’s mandate and SDG 9.

Kawira began her career with UNIDO 17 years ago in agri-business and agro-industry development. During this period, she has provided technical assistance in the implementation of agri-business programmes and projects in Asia, South America and Africa.

Ms. Bucyana's main achievements include: Food safety policy advice and support to improving food safety and quality infrastructure for trade facilitation in Mozambique, Ghana, Malawi, Uganda, Kenya and Ethiopia and provided technical assistance for increased food preservation and agro value addition for food security and poverty reduction.

Prior to joining UNIDO, Ms. Bucyana worked in quality management for the multinational pineapple processing industry - Del Monte Foods (K) Ltd and for Bowes Flavor Company in Canada.

Ms. Bucyana holds a Master of Science in Food Safety and Quality Assurance from the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, and a Bachelor of Science in Food Science and Technology from the University of Nairobi.

Ms. Landis has spent her career working in the field of relief and development. She began in 1985 working for OCHA (then UNDRO) in Geneva, Switzerland. She then took on assignments in Washington and in Africa working as a Disaster Operations Specialist and as an Emergency Operations Coordinator for the U.S. Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance within the Agency for International Development. From 1993 to 1995, she worked for InterAction, a coalition of U.S. based NGOs, as a Programme Officer. In 1995, Ms. Landis moved to Save the Children where she served for the next seven years in various assignments including Director of Humanitarian Response, and Director of the Food Security Unit.
In 2002, she took up the position of Director of the Office of Food for Peace within the U.S. Agency for International Development. Subsequently, Ms. Landis transitioned to the U.S. Department of State in 2006, where she served as the Senior Representative on Sudan.

Her returning to the UN in 2009, Ms. Landis served in Rome, Italy, for three years as Chief of Staff and Director of the Office of the Executive Director for the World Food Programme. She became the Director of the World Food Programme Geneva Office, from 2011 until 2013. From 2013 to 2016, Ms. Landis served as the WFP Country Representative and Director in Chad. In mid-2016, she returned to Rome, Italy to take up an appointment as WFP’s Director of Nutrition. In March 2020, Ms. Landis was appointed Representative and Country Director for the WFP Kenya Country Office. She arrived in Nairobi on 30 August 2020.

Li Fung is a human rights lawyer with over 24 years of experience working in human rights, protection, peace and security, development, humanitarian action and law in Africa, Asia, Middle East and the Pacific, and at UN headquarters in New York and Geneva.

Since joining the United Nations in 2006, Li has worked at headquarters and multiple field locations to address human rights and protection issues through operational, policy, legal and political engagement. At OHCHR headquarters, she led a team supporting human rights components in UN peace operations, and previously worked on early warning. In the field, Li coordinated the Protection Cluster in Palestine (West Bank and Gaza), and established an OHCHR programme on land, housing and natural resources in Cambodia. In addition to her experience with OHCHR, she has worked for the Office of the SRSG for Children and Armed Conflict, leading engagement in the Middle East and Asia. Prior to joining the United Nations, Li worked as a lawyer in public and private sectors in Australia and Vanuatu, and also for Oxfam in the Pacific region.

Li is a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria (Australia), and holds an LLM in international humanitarian and criminal law from the University of Melbourne, and an LLB and BA (Honours) from the University of Adelaide.

Mariatu Kamara is an International development professional with over 18 years of experience that spans United Nations, International Financial Institutions and Civil Society in conflict and post conflict Countries. She is a skilled negotiator and a driver of institutional reforms, organizational restructuring, with result in achieving efficiency gains and leading successful policy reforms. Mariatu has extensive experience in the execution of country strategies, programme/project development and management, partnerships building, resource mobilization, policy leadership and institutional management for rural and agricultural transformation. Prior to her joining International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), she served as Head of a Sub office with the World Food Programme (WFP) in Sierra Leone, coordinating relief, recovery and development activities from 2001 to 2005. She also served as a project Manager for the Recovery and Crisis Prevention unit with UNDP in Sudan from 2005 to 2011. In 2012, she served with a Non-Governmental Organization – CAFOD as the Programme Manager for Sierra Leone and Liberia.
Mariatu holds a Master’s Degree in Rural Development from Njala University, University of Sierra Leone.

Mark Majodina, the World Meteorological Organization Representative for Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA), took office on 1st September 2017. Prior to his appointment as the WMO Representative for Eastern and Southern Africa, Mr. Majodina served in the South African Weather Service for over 19 years in different capacities. He has also previously served in the Secretariat of the Meteorological Association of Southern Africa (MASA) and several technical committees of the WMO and its Executive Council. He also served as the Head of the WMO International Relations Advisers for the African region (RA1). Mr. Majodina graduated from the University of Pretoria with a Master of Science degree in Project Management. He also holds bachelor’s and Master of Science degrees in Ocean & Atmosphere Science from the University of Cape Town.

Prior to her appointment to in Kenya, Dr. Tsehaiu served for five years in the same position in Zambia and for three years in South Sudan. She has also served as Chief of Staff at the Federal Ministry of Health in Ethiopia, her country of birth. Medhin's professional career spans across research, academia, public health, management and development. She graduated with a PhD in Organic Chemistry from Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary.

Gemma Connell has been heads of the UN Office for the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Regional Office for Southern and Eastern Africa since July 2017, overseeing service to 25 countries. She has worked with OCHA in South Sudan, Syria, Nigeria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Myanmar, the Philippines and Ukraine. Prior to joining OCHA, Gemma worked with the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza, where she organised – and participated in – the first ever marathon. Gemma began her career working on women’s rights and human rights with the UN and several small NGOs.

Mr. Walsh is UNODC’s Regional Representative to Eastern Africa (ROEA). He is Head of Mission for 13 countries in the East Africa and Western Indian Ocean Region. He and his staff deliver UNODC’s Strategic Vision for Africa's response to crime, terrorism, security and health threats. Prior to joining UNODC ROEA, Neil led UNODC's global Cybercrime, Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Financing of Terrorism Department in Vienna. He has also served in the UK National Crime Agency countering international serious organised crime and terrorism including postings to Europol HQ in The Hague and the British High Commission in Malta. Neil comes from Belfast, Northern Ireland and holds a B.Sc. (Hons) in Psychology & Criminology and an M.Sc. in Criminal Investigation.

Shaheen Nilofer is the UNICEF Representative to Kenya. She has over 30 years of experience in the development sector at senior leadership positions. This includes building large social sector development and humanitarian programmes for non-profit organizations, bi-laterals and Governments in the backdrop of under-development and post-conflict environments.

Prior to joining UNICEF Kenya, Ms Nilofer served as UNICEF Representative to Eritrea (2019-22), UNICEF Representative to Turkmenistan (2016-19) and UNICEF Representative to Bhutan (2012-16). She also served as UNICEF Chief of Field Office in Chhattisgarh (Central India) for over five years.

Prior to joining UNICEF India, Ms Nilofer served in Oxfam GB, India and later in South Asia from 1993-2008 in various capacities including South Asia Regional Programme Quality Coordinator. She served as Oxfam’s Regional Representative, in East and South India region and later as India Country Humanitarian Programme Manager. She was responsible for programme strategy development and implementation, leveraging and resource management and management of human resources besides humanitarian response planning and management.

Ms Nilofer is an Indian national. She holds a Doctorate in Gender Studies and a Master’s degree in Sociology. She is fluent in English, Hindi and Urdu and is able to read and speak basic Arabic.

Sharon Dimanche assumed her role as the Chief of Mission of IOM Kenya from November 2019.

With a career spanning over 16 years, Sharon has led several IOM offices and operations to help address both short and long-term migration management challenges. She has worked with multiple IOM missions where she addressed irregular migration challenges, partnered with Governments for the implementation of the Global Compact for Migration, provided strategic direction in labor Migration and border management and led donor liaison and resource mobilization efforts in Bangladesh, Myanmar, Ethiopia, and Uganda.

Prior to joining IOM Kenya, Sharon held the position of the Deputy Chief of Mission (Development) at IOM Bangladesh. She also chaired the UN Migration Network in Bangladesh.

Ms. Dimanche holds a Master’s degree in International Relations and Diplomatic Studies (MAIRDS) and a Bachelor of Laws, LLB, (Hons), from Makerere University.

Ms. Bunbury is the United Nations Office of Counter Terrorism’s Regional Programme Coordinator for East Africa, and the Head of Office ad interim. She brings with her over 15 years of experience in development, humanitarian and stabilization programme management and policy leadership, the majority of which with the United Nations (UN) in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Prior to this assignment, Ms. Bunbury served over 10 years supporting peacekeeping, stabilization and rule of law initiatives with the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) within the Department of Peace Operations, where her last assignment was to Mali as the Deputy Programme Manager for UNMAS; she was also assigned to UN Headquarters in New York, and Somalia. Outside of the UN, Ms. Bunbury also worked with Global Affairs Canada, leading a team responsible for coordinating Canada’s international response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as with Handicap International, Mines Action Canada, and the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

Ms. Bunbury holds a master’s in conflict studies from the Open University of Catalonia in Barcelona, Spain, and a B.A. in international relations from York University in Toronto, Canada.

Thomas Chiramba is currently a Senior Human Settlements Officer in the Regional Office for Africa of UN Habitat responsible for 12 Eastern and Southern African Countries. He holds a PhD in civil engineering and a master’s degree in architecture and has over 30 years of professional experience in urban development and management. He has previously worked for the City of Kwekwe in Zimbabwe as City Engineer before assuming advisory positions with USAID and GIZ of national urban development programmes in Zimbabwe and Namibia. He has also worked for UNDP and UNEP.

Mr. Chibebe was appointed the Country Director for ILO Office for Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi in 2018. Prior to that, he was Deputy Secretary General of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC). His has been a steady growth, including working as apprentice fitter, then as mechanical engineering technician and on to become Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Law from the University of South Africa.