ECOSOC United Nations Economic and Social Counci : New Permanent Representative of India Presents Credentials

(Based on information provided by the Protocol and Liaison Service)

The new Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations, Syed Akbaruddin, presented his credentials to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today.

Prior to his appointment, Mr. Akbaruddin, career diplomat, was the Chief Coordinator of the India-Africa Forum Summit held in New Delhi in October 2015. Between 2012 and 2015, he served as Spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs.

Mr. Akbaruddin also worked as an international civil servant at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna from 2006 to 2011. During that period, he headed the Agency's External Relations and Policy Coordination Unit and worked as Special Assistant to the IAEA Director-General.

He has held a number of other diplomatic assignments, including Consul-General in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from 2000 to 2004, and First Secretary at his country's Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, from 1995 to 1998. He has also served in Riyadh and Cairo.

The holder of a master's degree in political science and international relations, Mr. Akbaruddin was born on 27 April 1960. He is married and has two children.