Stephen O’Brien

Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

Stephen O’Brien became the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator in June 2015. As a former Conservative Member of Parliament in the UK for 16 years, he was the Prime Minister’s Envoy and Special Representative for the Sahel 2012-2015. Prior to that he served as the Coalition Government’s Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development and before that in a succession of economic, health, care and education shadow Ministerial roles. He brings extensive experience in multilateral diplomacy and advocacy, gained over 35 years of global leadership in the campaign to control Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases, for which he was awarded the 2014 Champions Action Award in Washington DC. Before his political career, he was an entrepreneur and a lawyer.