Geneva – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) today announced the selection by Director General António Vitorino of two new Deputy Directors General during a special session of the IOM Member State Council in Geneva.

Ugochi Florence Daniels will assume the position of Deputy Director General for Operations.

A Nigerian national, Ms Daniels joins IOM from the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), where she currently serves as Chief of Staff to the Commissioner General. Prior to her assignment at UNRWA, Ms Daniels served as UN Resident Coordinator in Iran. In her previous career with the UN Population Fund, UNFPA, Ms Daniels held a variety of roles, including field assignments in Nepal and the Philippines, as well as the Agency’s headquarters in New York. She also worked for USAID and the private sector in Nigeria.

Amy E. Pope will assume the position of Deputy Director General for Management and Reform.

A national of the United States, Ms Pope currently serves as Senior Advisor on Migration at the White House. Ms Pope previously served the United States government as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Homeland Security Advisor from 2015 to 2017, and as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director on Transborder Security from 2013 to 2015.  She was trained as a lawyer and has held various functions with the US Justice Department and academic positions in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Their candidacies were presented by Nigeria and the United States, respectively. They were part of a pool of 25 candidates for the posts and were selected by the Director General following a rigorous process. Ms Daniels and Ms Pope bring to their respective positions a combination of strong skills and qualifications, diverse experiences and a strong commitment to IOM’s values and priorities.

“I have every confidence that they will help maintain the strong leadership, values and performance demonstrated by outgoing Deputy Director General Laura Thompson over the past decade,” DG Vitorino said.

They will assume their posts in September.

For more information, please contact Paul Dillon at IOM Geneva, Tel: +41 79 636 9874, Email: pdillon@iom.int