UN Secretary-General António Guterres made official on Monday 10 January his announcement that Nigerian Amina J. Mohammed will continue to serve as Deputy Secretary-General in her second term.
Amina J. Mohammed is Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations since january 2017, and Chair of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group. By delegating development coordination to the Deputy Secretary-General, the UN says, the UN Secretary-General had implemented the most ambitious reform of the UN development system in history. To this end, the UN recalls, Amina Mohammed’s leadership has helped to advance the conceptual change in the UN that Member States have called for through the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Over the past five years, the UN Sustainable Development Group has been strengthened to improve global leadership and oversight of development, while the UN has put in place a strengthened UN Resident Coordinator system as the basis for a more effective development system.
Amina J. Mohammed joined the United Nations in 2012 as Special Adviser to the Secretary-General (then Ban Ki-moon) on Post-2015 Development Planning. She led the process that resulted in the global consensus on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the definition of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Nigeria’s Minister of the Environment
Prior to her appointment, Amina J. Mohammed served as Minister of the Environment of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, where she led the country’s efforts on climate action and protection of the natural environment. In addition, she has served as an advisor to four successive presidents on issues related to poverty, public sector reform and sustainable development.
In addition, she has worked for three successive governments in Nigeria as a special advisor on the Millennium Development Goals, advising on issues such as poverty, public sector reform and sustainable development, and coordinating poverty reduction interventions.
Early in her career, Amina J. Mohammed focused on the design of schools and clinics in Nigeria. Her focus was on improving access to education and other social services.
Winner of several awards
Amina J. Mohammed has received several honorary doctorates. She was an associate professor, lecturing on international development. She has received several global awards and has served on numerous international panels and advisory boards. She has six children and two grandchildren.
Key role in the SDGs
The Secretary-General expressed his gratitude to the Deputy Secretary-General for her leadership of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group and her commitment to strengthening collective results and maximizing the impact of the UN development system on the ground.
Despite significant headwinds, her role has been instrumental in keeping the SDGs alive at the country level and protecting the Paris Agreement: from the robust response to the socio-economic effects of the COVID-19 crisis, through the impetus given to climate action and the unprecedented push for financing for development, to the strong emphasis she has placed on coherence between humanitarian, political and development actions.
