Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator


The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator is a high-level position in the United Nations that heads the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The current holder is Mark Lowcock of the United Kingdom, who took office in September 2017, following his appointment by UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

History

The post of Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator was created by UN resolution 46/182 in December 1991 to coordinate the efforts of the United Nations, member states and the wider humanitarian community in response to natural and man-made emergencies. The title of "Emergency Relief Coordinator", refers to coordination and aid management responsibilities across both the UN system and the wider assistance community.

List of Under-Secretaries-General

#NameNationalityOffice enteredOffice left
1Jan Eliasson Sweden19921994
2Peter Hansen Denmark19941996
3Yasushi Akashi Japan19961998
4Sérgio Vieira de Mello Brazil1998January 2001
5Kenzo Oshima JapanJanuary 2001June 2003
6Jan Egeland NorwayJune 2003December 2006
7John Holmes United KingdomJanuary 2007September 2010
8Valerie Amos United KingdomSeptember 2010May 2015
9Stephen O'Brien United KingdomMay 2015September 2017
10Mark Lowcock United KingdomSeptember 2017current