Director-General of the International Committee of the Red Cross
Incumbent
Robert Mardini
since 30 March 2020 (2020-03-30)
ResidenceGeneva, Switzerland
SeatICRC Headquarters, Geneva
Websitehttps://www.icrc.org/en/document/icrc-directorate

Robert Mardini (born 6 August 1972) is a Lebanese-Swiss humanitarian at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and has served as its Director-General since 2020.

Early life and education

Mardini was born and raised in Tripoli, Lebanon. He was educated at the Lycée Franco-Libanais Alphonse de Lamartine and at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland, where he was awarded a Master of Science in civil engineering and hydraulics in 1996.[1]

Professional career

Mardini joined the ICRC in 1997, coordinating water engineering programmes in Rwanda and Iraq, before leading the organization's Water & Habitat Unit with projects in over 40 countries, improving access to water, sanitation and hygiene services to around 14 million people per year. He went on to hold various senior positions within the organization, including Deputy Director General (2010–2012), Regional Director for the Near and Middle East (2012–2018) and Permanent Observer of the ICRC to the United Nations & Head of Delegation in New York (2018–2020). In this latter role, Mardini steered the ICRC's diplomatic engagement with the UN Security Council, the UN General Assembly, Member States and UN entities to influence decisions on humanitarian issues across policy themes and geographic contexts.[2][3][4] He has spoken and published on a broad range of key issues such as armed conflict and humanitarian crisis in the Middle East;[5][6][7] international humanitarian law;[8] sexual violence in conflict;[9] humanitarian action and counter-terrorism measures;[10] and the future of humanitarian action.[11] Mardini was appointed ICRC Director-General in October 2019 , and took up his position on 30 March 2020.[12] In October 2020, he received the EPFL Alumni Award for his 'exceptional career'.[13]

Mardini's tenure began during the COVID-19 pandemic, quickly followed by the Russia-Ukraine international armed conflict, which precipitated a period of extraordinary humanitarian needs worldwide and a considerable increase in ICRC's budget.[14] The ICRC’s planned budget of CHF2.79 billion ($2.99 billion) for 2023 – focusing on many of the world’s most neglected and most underfunded humanitarian crises – faced a shortfall of up to CHF 700 million.[15]

Personal life

Mardini has dual Lebanese and Swiss citizenship. He is married and has two daughters.

References

  1. ^ Werlé, Christine (9 September 2021). "Enfant de la guerre". corporate.migros.ch (in French). Retrieved 30 March 2023.
  2. ^ "International Humanitarian Law is key to upholding multilateralism and addressing global challenges". 9 November 2018 – via www.icrc.org. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. ^ "Developing capacity for peace and security of African States requires sustained partnerships". International Committee of the Red Cross. 20 November 2018.
  4. ^ "First ever ICRC contribution to Security Council debate on climate – Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre". www.climatecentre.org.
  5. ^ "Viewpoint: Why it is unconscionable to attack Syria's aid workers". BBC News. 23 September 2016.
  6. ^ "Iraq: ICRC strongly condemns use of chemical weapons around Mosul". International Committee of the Red Cross. 3 March 2017.
  7. ^ Zarocostas, John (29 May 2017). "Frontline: Providing care in the midst of the crisis in Yemen". The Lancet. 389 (10081): 1785. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(17)31199-6. PMID 28495158. S2CID 205986570.
  8. ^ "Robert Mardini: "Il est urgent de croire au droit international humanitaire"". rts.ch. 6 July 2018.
  9. ^ "We must create and safeguard an environment that prevents sexual violence". International Committee of the Red Cross. 23 April 2019.
  10. ^ "ICRC statement to UN Security Council opens debate on preventing and combating financing of terrorism". 28 March 2019 – via www.icrc.org. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  11. ^ "In a changing world, humanitarianism needs to be smarter and more innovative than ever". The National. 31 December 2019.
  12. ^ "ICRC appoints new director-general". International Committee of the Red Cross. 31 October 2019.
  13. ^ EPFL (10 May 2020). ""The pandemic comes on top of other crises managed by the ICRC"". ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  14. ^ "Humanitarian needs to deepen in dozens of conflict zones as world's attention wanes ICRC".
  15. ^ "ICRC fears unprecedented deficit amid Ukraine war".
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