The Board of Trustees is the Institute’s governing body. The Board formulates principles and policies to govern the Institute’s activities and operations; approves the work programme; adopts the budget; reviews the structure and composition of staffing and performs other statutory functions, including considering the methods of financing the Institute with a view to ensuring the effectiveness of its future operations, their continuity and the Institute’s autonomous character within the framework of the United Nations.

Composition

The Board is composed of a small, yet highly diverse group of distinguished trustees who are appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General in consultation with the President of the General Assembly and the President of the Economic and Social Council. Trustees are eligible for a maximum of two consecutive, three-year terms. 

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Members

Luis Gallegos (Chair)

Luis Gallegos
June 2019
May 2025

His Excellency Mr. Luis Gallegos is an Ecuadorian diplomat. He was Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Ecuador from July 2020 until March 2021. Previously, he served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Ecuador to the United Nations in New York and Geneva, in addition to postings in Canberra, Chicago, El Salvador, Madrid, Sofia and Washington, D.C. In addition to his longstanding diplomatic career, Ambassador Gallegos has been honored with various state decorations, recognitions and awards, including having received in 2011 the highest Ecuadorian decoration as recognition of his work for his country, as well as recognitions for his work in the fields of human rights and disabilities. Ambassador Gallegos is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Global UN Partnership for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies, in addition to holding senior positions on other boards and foundations.

Ambassador Gallegos has served as a fellow to UNITAR. He holds a Juris Doctor Degree from the Central University of Ecuador, as well as a Masters of Arts Degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy of Tufts University. He is married and has two children.

Akiko Yuge

Akiko Yuge UNITAR BoT
October 2022
September 2025

Akiko Yuge is Professor in the Department of Politics of the Faculty of Law of Hosei University, Tokyo. Professor Yuge has had a long, distinguished career, with 30 years in the United Nations culminating as Assistant Secretary-General/Assistant Administrator and Director, Bureau of Management in the United Nations Development Programme. Professor Yuge has also served UNDP in other capacities, including Director of the UNDP Representation Office in Tokyo and Special Advisor to the UNDP Administrator. Among her many achievements, she has strengthened UNDP’s strategic partnerships with Japan in various areas, including policy dialogue, resource mobilization, joint projects and media coverage and visibility.

Mathu Joyini

Mathu Joyini
October 2022
September 2025

Ambassador Mathu Joyini is Permanent Representative of South African to the United Nations in New York and Chair for the Commission on the Status of Women (2021 to 2023). Previously, Ambassador Joyini served as Deputy Director-General at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, heading the Diplomatic Academy and the Mediation Support Unit (since 2016). She has undertaken various international assignments, including as Permanent Representative of South Africa to the International Seabed Authority (2010 to 2015) and as High Commissioner and Ambassador to six countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. She has also held positions in the private sector in mining, finance and petroleum, among other fields, prior to joining Government in 2001.

Chen Xu

Ambassador Chen Xu
October 2019
August 2024

Ambassador CHEN Xu is Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations Office at Geneva and other International Organizations in Switzerland. Prior to this appointment, Ambassador CHEN served as Director-General of the Department of European Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs(MFA). From 2013 to 2016, he was Ambassador of China to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and Permanent Representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and, from 2010 to 2012, Director-General of the Department of International Organizations and Conferences of MFA.

In previous assignments, Ambassador CHEN served as Special Advisor to the Foreign Minister, Deputy Director-General of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China, and at the Permanent Mission of China to UN as, among others, political coordinator for Security Council affairs.

Gennady Gatilov

Gennady Gatilov
September 2018
August 2024

Ambassador Gennady Gatilov is Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations Office and Other International Organizations in Geneva, and Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the Conference on Disarmament. Prior to this appointment in January 2018, Ambassador Gatilov was Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2011, and earlier, Director of the Department of International Organizations (2008-2011) and Senior Advisor with the Executive Office of the Secretary-General (2004-2008). During the span of his distinguished career, Ambassador Gatilov has had various other senior positions and diplomatic postings. He was awarded the Order of Honour and the Order of Friendship. He is a graduate of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. He is married with a daughter.

Dorothea Gieselmann

Dorothea Gieselmann
October 2023
September 2026

Ms. Dorothea Gieselmann brings over 20 years of experience as a German diplomat. As Head of the Division of UN Economic, Social and Development Issues of the German Federal Office she coordinates i. a. the advancement of the Agenda 2030. She served in various functions at the Ministry in Berlin and in German Embassies in Skopje, Warsaw, Kabul and Belgrade. She was Deputy Ambassador of Germany to Serbia from 2018 to 2022. Before her present assignment, she was Acting Head of the Task Force Afghan Relocation. Prior to entering the Foreign Service, Ms. Gieselmann worked as a lecturer at the University of Muenster. She holds a degree in Slavonic Studies, History and Economics from the University of Muenster. Among her fields of interest are the history and culture of Central, South Eastern and Eastern Europe and Feminist Foreign Policy.

Nikolaj Gilbert

Nikolaj Gilbert
March 2021
February 2024

Nikolaj Gilbert is president and chief executive officer of PATH. He brings to his role more than 20 years of international experience as a leader, strategist, and director of complex partnerships. With a proven track record in both the private and public sectors, his expertise spans health, peacebuilding, humanitarian aid, and development solutions.

Before joining PATH in 2020, Mr. Gilbert served as director of partnerships for the United Nations Office of Project Services. In that position, he cultivated a deep understanding of the development ecosystem and of health inequity’s underlying causes—from those rooted in global systems and markets, to those at local levels.

Based on his development sector and health industry expertise, Mr. Gilbert has an intimate knowledge of health agendas and priorities across donor and partner countries. He has demonstrated his ability to drive change at scale by building new programs and diversified funding models.

Previously, Mr. Gilbert served as a director for Novo Nordisk, where he developed expertise across corporate strategy, public-private partnership, business development, global marketing, and finance. He began his career at Accenture, a global management consulting firm, and has also worked with management research at INSEAD, a business school.

Mr. Gilbert is a Danish citizen and holds advanced degrees in business administration from Copenhagen Business School in Denmark and Ivey Business School in Canada.

Terhi Hakala

Terhi Hakala
May 2018
April 2024

Ambassador Terhi Hakala is the European Union Special Representative for Central Asia since July 2021. Previously, she served as Ambassador of Hybrid Affairs, Technology and Security of Finland and earlier as Permanent Representative of Finland to the United Nations Office, WTO and other international organizations in Geneva (September 2016 – August 2020) and as Director-General of the Department of Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland (2012 – August 2016). From 2009 to 2011, she served as Ambassador of Finland to India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Nepal. From 2007 to 2009, she was Head of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Mission to Georgia, Tbilisi, and from 2004 to 2007, she was the roving Ambassador to Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

A career diplomat, Ms. Hakala, has also served as Director of the Unit for Eastern Europe and Central Asia at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs from 2001 to 2004; Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Finland in Moscow from 1998 to 2000; Deputy Consul General at the Consulate General of Finland in St. Petersburg from 1996 to 1998; and Finnish Co-Chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Minsk Conference on Nagorno-Karabakh from 1995 to 1996, among others. She has a Master of Arts from Åbo Akademi, Finland.

Indra Mani Pandey

Indra Mani Pandey
March 2021
February 2024

Ambassador Indra Mani Pandey is Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva. Prior to this appointment in September 2020, Ambassador Pandey served as the Ministry of External Affairs as Director General in charge of the Disarmament and International Security Affairs Division from August 2018 to August 2020.

Earlier in his career in the foreign service, he served as Ambassador to Oman from August 2015 to July 2018, and Deputy Ambassador to France from January 2013 to July 2015. Other assignments include Director of Counter Terrorism and Director of the Americas Division of the Ministry of External Affairs, and Counsellor (disarmament) at the Permanent Mission to the Conference on Disarmament  from September 2003, in addition to postings in Islamabad and Kabul.

Ali Bin Fetais Al-Marri

Ali Bin Fetais Al-Marri
March 2021
February 2024

His Excellency Dr. Ali Bin Fetais Al-Marri is a member of The Shura Council of the State of Qatar. He has been a member of the International Law Commission (2002 -) and a leading authority and advocate on the prevention of corruption. From 2002 to June 2021, Dr. Al-Marri was Attorney General of the State of Qatar. In September 2012, he was appointed Special Regional Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime for the recovery of stolen assets.

His responsibilities included supporting the activities concerning the enhancement of international strategies for stolen funds recovery, offering counsel and contributing to the definition of capacity-building and technical assistance activities for the establishment of national systems for the recovery of funds and prevention of restricted financial flows, and enhancing mutual judicial assistance.

His mandate was renewed in 2014, and his title was modified to UN Special Advocate on the Prevention of Corruption. In 2012, Dr. Al-Marri established the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption Center in Qatar, which aims to build specialized knowledge and raise individual capacity to strengthen the rule of law and fight corruption in accordance with international standards and national requirements.

The Center also seeks to support the parties concerned in the Arab countries and other countries in the areas of upholding the rule of law, good governance, and fighting corruption. He chairs the Center’s Board of Trustees, which include several eminent legal figures in the world.

Anna Jardfelt

Ambassador Anna Jardfelt
March 2021
February 2024

Ambassador Anna Jardfelt was appointed as Permanent Representative of Sweden to the United Nations Office in Geneva from 1 September 2020.

Prior to this appointment, Ms. Jardfelt had been serving as Sweden’s Ambassador to Kenya and Permanent Representative to UNEP and UN-Habitat in Nairobi. From 2014 to 2017 she severed as Ambassador to the European Union’s Political and Security Committee in Brussels. She was the Director of the Swedish Institute for International Affairs in Stockholm from 2010 to 2014. 

As a career diplomat Ms. Jardfelt has held other postings. She has also worked for the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities and in the European Parliament.

Ms. Jardfelt has a Master of Law. She is married with two children. 

Deisi Kusztra

Deisi Kusztra
May 2018
April 2024

Dr. Deisi Kusztra is the President of the World Family Organization. Since assuming this position in 1997, she represents the Organization at the United Nations, governments and inter-governmental organizations level. She directs the work of the Organization through its regional structures and national committees, and assists governments in preparing strategic frameworks and plans of action to implement family-focused policies, programs, projects and services at national, regional and local levels, specially in health, education, housing, social promotion, family mediation, microcredit, among others.

In partnership with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs – NGO Section, she is implementing the Informal Regional Network in Latin America, preparing NGOs to establish partnerships with Governments and the Private Sector, strengthening their capacity to network and respond to the challenges of development.

She has received many national and international awards and prizes, in recognition of her dedication and her work towards the promotion of family policies throughout the world. Dr. Deisi Kusztra was born on August 09, 1951, in Curitiba, Brazil. Dr. Kusztra has worked in Africa, Europe, Middle East and North America and is now based in South America, from where she networks with the world on Family Issues.

Jürg Lauber

Jürg Lauber
October 2020
September 2026

His Excellency Mr. Jürg Lauber is Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations and other Organizations in Geneva. Prior to this appointment in September 2020, Ambassador Lauber served as Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations in New York since 2015, During this time, he also served as President of the Burundi Configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission. Previously, he was Deputy Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations Office at Geneva from 2009 to 2011, and Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the Conference on Disarmament. 

Before joining the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs in 1993 he worked in peacekeeping missions in Namibia (UNTAG) and Korea (Panmunjom). Between 2007 and 2009 he served as chef de cabinet to the president of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands. Between 2011 and 2015 he served as head of the United Nations and International Organizations Division in Bern. Jürg Lauber has a law degree from the University of Zurich.

Patti P. Phillips

Patti P. Phillips
May 2018
April 2024

Patti P. Phillips, Ph.D., is the co-founder and CEO of ROI Institute, Inc., a US-based consulting firm that serves for-profit, not-for-profit, government, and non-governmental organizations in 70 countries as they build capability in measurement, evaluation, and human capital analytics using the ROI Methodology®.

An internationally recognized leader in measurement and analytics, Patti is routinely invited to speak at industry conferences worldwide and contributes to the growing amount of research in human capital and human capital analytics. Her expertise is documented in over 50 published books. Her work has been cited on CNBC, Euronews, and National Geographic and published in more than a dozen business journals. She is a thought partner to research organizations such as The Conference Board and the Institute for Corporate Productivity. 

She is the recipient of the 2022 Association for Talent Development (ATD) Thought Leader Award and the 2019 Center for Talent Reporting Distinguished Contributor Award. In 2019, she was named among the top fifty coaches globally by the Thinkers50 organization and named a finalist for the Marshall Goldsmith Distinguished Achievement Award for Coaching. Patti serves as the chair of the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp) People Analytics Board; Senior Adviser for The Conference Board; board chair for the Center for Talent Reporting (CTR), board member of the International Federation of Training and Development Organizations (IFTDO), and board member of the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI).

Patti can be reached at patti@roiinstitute.net.

Ex Officio members

United Nations Secretary-General
President of the General Assembly
President of the Economic and Social Council
Executive Director, United Nations Institute for Training and Research

Secretary of the Board

Brook Boyer
United Nations Institute for Training and Research
Palais des Nations
CH 1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
Email: BOT@unitar.org

Finance Committee

The Finance Committee reviews the programme budget, financial statements, resource mobilization strategies and related documents, and provides recommendations to the Board for decisions.