ICRC appoints new director-general

Mr Krähenbühl has dedicated more than 30 years to the humanitarian sector, including 25 years in prominent roles at the ICRC in delegations and at headquarters. He is recognized as a strategic and purpose-driven leader with deep organizational experience and dedication to the ICRC.

Mr Krähenbühl currently holds the position of secretary-general to the Assembly at the ICRC; immediately prior he served as the personal envoy of the ICRC President to China and head of regional delegation for East Asia (2021-2023). In 2014 he was appointed as commissioner-general and under-secretary general of the United Nations at UNWRA (2014-2019).

His previous leadership appointments at the ICRC include director of operations (2002-2014) and personal adviser to the President of the ICRC (2000-2002). Mr Krähenbühl also carried out various operational assignments in El Salvador, Peru, Afghanistan, and Bosnia and Herzegovina (1991-1998); and as head of operations for Central and South-Eastern Europe, based in Geneva (1998-2000). He holds an MA in political science and international relations from the University of Geneva and Graduate Institute of International Relations.

Mr Krähenbühl will commence as director-general on 1 April 2024, when the current incumbent, Robert Mardini, finishes his four-year mandate.

About the ICRC

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a neutral, impartial and independent organization with an exclusively humanitarian mandate that stems from the Geneva Conventions of 1949. It helps people around the world affected by armed conflict and other violence, doing everything it can to protect their lives and dignity and to relieve their suffering, often alongside its Red Cross and Red Crescent partners.