The first UAE national to join the staff of the United Nations Headquarter in New York, Ms. Ahood Abdulla Al Zaabi, was seconded recently to assume her role as ‘Advisor on Humanitarian Issues, Health and Culture’ at the Office of the President of the sixty-ninth session of the General Assembly. Ms. Al Zaabi provides advice on humanitarian affairs by monitoring and liaising with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), as well as working with relevant UN Agencies and other stakeholders including WHO, UNAIDS, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Malaria, GAVI, the Global Fund, and by closely cooperating with UNESCO and other organizations on cultural issues.
In addition, she is part of a team that organizes a set of High-Level thematic debates and events that will be convened by the President of the General Assembly in 2015. She also contributes to the ongoing efforts of the Office of the President of General Assembly to liaise with relevant stakeholders on ways to enhance their consultative role and participation in the work of the General Assembly.
Ms. Al Zaabi is a career diplomat from the United Arab Emirates. She joined the UAE foreign service in 2009, and most recently served as Director of the Office of the Assistant Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs. In that role, she was responsible for briefing the Minister and supporting him on foreign missions, managing significant internal projects, as well as organizing international conferences, representing the UAE in international meetings, and liaising with foreign government representatives. Prior to joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Al Zaabi served as an Economic Researcher in the UAE Ministry of Economy. She holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Nottingham.