Kandeh K. Yumkella (born July 5,
1959) is the Director-General of the
United
Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
In
1994-1995, he was the Minister for Trade, Industry and State
Enterprises of Sierra
Leone
.
Between
1987 and 1996, he held various academic positions at Michigan State
University
and the University of Illinois, where he
received a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics in
1991.
In December 2005, Yumkella was appointed as Director-General of
UNIDO, and in June 2009 he was recommended for a second term in
office.
He is also the Chairman of the
UN-Energy,
a United Nations system coordination body dealing with
energy-related issues.
He has worked in different high-level policy
positions in UNIDO, including as Special Adviser to two previous
Directors-General and as Representative and Director of the first
UNIDO Regional Office in Nigeria
[751027].
Yumkella is a prominent public speaker, who addresses global
issues, including
poverty reduction,
climate change [751028], the
Millennium Development Goals,
as well those related to
Africa [751029] and the
developing world [751030] in general, green industry and
renewable energy.
Dr. Yumkella's opinion pieces have appeared in major international
newspapers, including
The New York Times, the
International Herald Tribune
[751031], and
The Guardian.
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