Geneva, 23 Feb. 2009-United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has announced the appointment of Ambassador Petko Draganov of Bulgaria as Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
Mr. Draganov will take up the post in May 2009.
"I would like to take this opportunity to warmly congratulate Ambassador Draganov who is well acquainted with all aspects of our work and will make a strong contribution to our future efforts," said UNCTAD Secretary-General Supachai Panitchpakdi.
In 2007-08, Mr. Draganov was President of the fifty-fourth session of the Trade and Development Board, the body which guides UNCTAD´s activities from year to year. He also served as Chair of the Preparatory Committee for the UNCTAD XII quadrennial conference held in April 2008 in Accra, Ghana.
Ms. Lakshmi Puri has served as Acting Deputy Secretary-General of UNCTAD since September 2007, in addition to her regular duties as Director of UNCTAD´s Division on International Trade in Goods and Services, and Commodities. She will continue to be Acting Deputy Secretary-General until Mr. Draganov takes up his appointment.
I would also like to place on record my deep appreciation for her outstanding work over this period," Mr. Supachai said.
Brief biographical note: Petko Draganov
Mr. Draganov is currently serving his second term as Permanent Representative of Bulgaria to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva. Between those terms, he held the position of Deputy Foreign Minister and President of the National Commission on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) of the Government of Bulgaria.
Overall, he has had a 25-year diplomatic career, including posts as Ambassador of Bulgaria to South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana, and sub-ambassadorial positions at Bulgarian embassies in Ghana and Zimbabwe.
Mr. Draganov holds a Master of Arts degree in international law from the Moscow Institute for International Relations.
