Director
Kamal Amakrane is the Director in the Office of the President of the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), with special responsibilities for migration, refugees, and human trafficking issues. In this context, he leads the Office’s engagement in the intergovernmental negotiations towards the adoption of the Global Compact for Migration and the Political Declaration on Combatting Trafficking in Persons, as well as the implementation of the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants.
This builds on his earlier work steering efforts leading to the adoption of the New York Declaration (2015-2016), when he was the Political Director of the Office of the President of the 70th Session of the UNGA, overseeing political, human rights, humanitarian and legal issues.
Prior to his work for the General Assembly, Kamal has an accomplished track record as a senior UN official. He served as Chief of Staff of the UN Operation in Cote d’Ivoire (UNOCI), where he advanced the coordination of UN’s peacekeeping, political, electoral and rule of law engagements & programs in the country. He also directed UNOCI’s Ebola response efforts (2013-2015).
Before taking up his appointment in Abidjan, Kamal led the Office of the UN-African Union Joint Special Representative for Darfur & Head of UNAMID, where he oversaw the crafting and execution of UNAMID’s strategy for the protection of civilians in Darfur and assisted with the implementation of the Doha Peace Agreement (2011-2013). From 2008 to 2011, he served as Special Assistant to the UN Envoy to Myanmar, tasked to advance the democratic transition in Myanmar and negotiate the release of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Previously, Kamal had spent many years supporting the UN’s engagement towards the stabilization of Iraq. He was part of the early missions working on the political transition in Iraq and tasked with organizing the country’s first elections (2004-2007) and then assisted with the negotiation and implementation of the International Compact with Iraq (2007-2008).
His international career began in the Office of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan (2002), after which he joined the Office of Arab League’s Secretary-General Amr Moussa, advising on Iraq issues (2003). Prior to devoting himself to international cooperation, Kamal was working on sustainable development and urban planning issues in his home country Morocco (1998-2001).
Kamal was elected to the Executive Board of Sciences Po Paris in 2002 & 2003, and was appointed Yale World Fellow in 2012. He is an Architect and a graduate of Sciences Po Paris and Columbia University (SIPA). He speaks fluent Spanish, English, French, Arabic and Amazigh.