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 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.

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.

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.

Ambassador Freiherr von Ungern-Sternberg (Ret) served as Permanent Representative of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Office of the United Nations and to the other International Organizations in Geneva in September 2018. Prior to this appointment, he served as Ambassador to Jakarta (2016-2018) and Tehran (2013-2016). He served as Ambassador, Deputy Director-General then Director-General for the United Nations of the Federal Foreign Office from 2007-2009. From 2002 to 2007, he served at the Permanent Mission of Germany to the United Nations in New York, first as Head of the Political Section (2002-2007) and from December 2009 as Deputy Permanent Representative. As a career diplomat, Ambassador Freiherr von Ungern-Sternberg also held a number of other postings. He is married and has three children ambassador Freiherr von Ungern-Sternberg also held a number of other postings. He is married and has three children.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.