El-Ghassim Wane was appointed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday. He will replace Chadian Mahamat Saleh Annadif at the head of Minusma, this important UN peacekeeping force that has nearly 14,500 men in Mali.
A lawyer by training, El-Ghassim Wane studied in Senegal and France before rising through the ranks of the African Union. Head of the Conflict Management Department, affiliated with the Refugee Department, AU Spokesman: El-Ghassim Wane held a number of key positions within the Pan-African institution before leading the AU’s Department of Peace and Security at AU from 2009 to 2015. Commission.
By appointing him UN envoy to Mali, Antonio Guterres relies in particular on his expertise in conflict resolution. In fact, El-Ghassim Wane leaves in “known soil” remarks a diplomat praising his address book. “On behalf of the AU, El-Ghassim Wane was the conductor of the deployment of the African Armed Forces in support of Operation Serval,” adds this source, who recalls that the African diplomat was heavily involved in influencing the positions of the junta, which then led by Amadou Sanogo.
But El-Ghassim Wane is also a technician. “A great lonely worker,” according to a connoisseur of AU’s mysteries. “The whole challenge for him,” this observer continues, “will be to be a good politician” to lead Minusma.
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