NEW PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF GUINEA-BISSAU PRESENTS CREDENTIALS

Biographical Note                                     BIO/3030

                                                      12 August 1996

NEW PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF GUINEA-BISSAU PRESENTS CREDENTIALS

Alfredo Lopes Cabral, the new Permanent Representative of Guinea-Bissau, presented his credentials today to Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali.

Mr. Cabral had previously occupied that post from 1986 to 1990.  He was subsequently accredited to represent his country in Washington, D.C., where he served until his current appointment.  He was simultaneously his country's     non-resident Ambassador to Ottawa.

From 1983 to 1986, Mr. Cabral was Guinea-Bissau's Ambassador to Algeria and the Middle East.  He served from 1979 to 1983 as First Counsellor, and then Chargé d'affaires, of Guinea-Bissau's Mission to the United Nations.  Since 1982, he has also been a member of his country's delegation to the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

From 1975 to 1979, Mr. Cabral was the Director of the Africa-Asia Division of Guinea-Bissau's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  He served there as Chef de Cabinet from 1974 to 1975.

Mr. Cabral has regularly participated in the work of the General Assembly since 1975.  Over the course of this period, he has served as Assembly Vice-President and has presided over several committees and working groups.  He has also represented his country on the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Executive Board of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), in addition to heading the Guinea-Bissau delegation to several international conferences.

Mr. Cabral was also the Chairman of the ambassadorial preparatory committee for the African/African-American summit meetings held in Abidjan (1991), Libreville (1993) and Dakar (1995).  He was a member of his country's delegation to meetings of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the Non-Aligned Movement and the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

Mr. Cabral is a chemical engineer who also holds a degree in international relations, as well as several special studies certificates from universities in New York and Washington, D.C., and from the Institute of Diplomatic and Strategic Studies.  He speaks English, French, Portuguese, German and Spanish.

Born in 1946, Mr. Cabral is married and has three children.

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