UN Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Swedish diplomat Ingibjörg Ulrika Olufsdóttir Richardson as his new Deputy Special Representative and Resident Coordinator in Libya, succeeding Zimbabwe’s Raisedon Zenenga Shuma, to whom he expressed gratitude for dedicated service.
Richardson brings over 30 years of experience in development, humanitarian assistance, post-conflict recovery, and human rights, having served with the UN in West and Central Africa, the Caribbean, the Western Balkans, and Southeast Europe. She most recently held the post of Deputy Special Representative, Resident Coordinator, and Humanitarian Coordinator in Haiti, and previously served as Resident Coordinator in Kosovo.
She holds a master’s degree in Development Economics from the University of Gothenburg and a bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences from Lund University. In addition to her native Swedish, she is fluent in English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.
Her appointment follows the January 2025 naming of Ghana’s Hanna Tetteh as Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the UN Mission in Libya.