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.

Ambassador Shen Jian is Deputy 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 Shen served as Deputy Director-General of the Department of Arms Control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).

Having spent almost 30 years in a variety of related roles, Ambassador Shen is experienced in international security and multilateral affairs. Ambassador Shen has also held different roles in Embassy of China in the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Department of Translation and Interpretation of MFA.

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 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.

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.

Ambassador Petersen was as appointed Permanent Representative of Denmark to the United Nations in Geneva on 1 November 2023. From September 2020 to October 2023 Ambassador Petersen served as Assistant Secretary General, Deputy Executive Director (Management) in UNFPA, New York. He came to UNFPA from a position as Director for the Department of Migration, Conflict and Stabilization of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr. Petersen has over 30 years of experience within the spheres of bilateral and multilateral affairs and development.  He served as the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Denmark to the United Nations in New York from 2013-2019, during which period he held several important duties.  Most notably, Mr. Petersen has served on the Executive Boards of the United Nations Development Programmes, including as President of the Executive Board of UN Women in 2015 and as President of the Joint UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board in 2017. Mr. Petersen was in 2019 Denmark’s Special Envoy for ICPD25 and the Nairobi Summit as well as Special Envoy for Conflict and Fragility.

Mr. Petersen started his long-serving career with the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1985. Throughout his service, he notably held the positions of State Secretary (Middle East, Africa, Asia, Latin America and the United Nations) from 2007-2009 and State Secretary for Development Policy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2009-2013.  Mr. Petersen served as Under Secretary for Bilateral Cooperation from 2004-2007, and before that as Director, Department for Development Policy from 2001-2004. During this time, Mr. Petersen led the development of new strategies for Danish development cooperation, strengthened results-based management and successfully implemented development campaigns and initiatives to support economic growth in Africa, as well as promotion of human rights, in particular women's rights and empowerment.

Mr. Petersen holds a Master’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Aarhus. He is Commander of the Order of the Dannebrog.

Mr. Petersen is married and has two sons. 

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.

His Excellency Dr. Bosun Tijani is the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. An accomplished entrepreneur and business leader, Dr. Tijani is a pioneer in the African startup ecosystem and has been instrumental in driving innovation and fostering the growth of tech startups across the continent.  He is the co-founder and former CEO of Co-Creation Hub (CcHUB), the leading pan-African technology and innovation center with presence in Nigeria, Kenya, Rwanda and Namibia. Founded in 2010, CcHUB has played a pivotal role in nurturing startups through mentorship programmes, funding initiatives, and access to essential resources.

Dr. Tijani's visionary leadership, passion for technology, and commitment to fostering a thriving startup ecosystem have made him a respected figure in the African tech communities. His dedication to creating opportunities and driving innovation continues to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs in Nigeria and beyond. Earlier in his career, he led the networking and coordination of leading innovation agencies across Europe as European Innovation Manager at PERA, with the aim of standardizing the varying methodologies for commercializing research results. He had also previously worked at the International Trade Centre, in Geneva Switzerland overseeing the design and implementation of technical support programmes geared towards enlightening and assisting exporters in Sub-Saharan Africa in maximising the use of information and communication technologies for export marketing.

Dr. Tijani is an exemplary scholar who holds a Bachelor's Degree in Economics from the University of Jos, a Masters degree in Information Systems and Management from Warwick University and a Doctorate degree in Innovation and Economic Development from the University of Leicester. He is also an adjunct professor at the Wits School of Governance, South Africa.

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.

Akiko Yuge was Professor in the Department of Politics of the Faculty of Law of Hosei University, Tokyo, from 2014 to March 2024. 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.

Professor Yuge currently serves as: Member of the Board of Directors of Japan Committee for UNICEF; Member of the Board of Trustees of Japan Foundation for United Nations University; Chair of the Development Project Accountability Committee, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan; as well as member of board of trustees of several Japanese NGOs. 

Dr. Abdenur serves as Special Advisor (International Affairs) to the President of Brazil. Prior to this appointment, she was Co-founder and Executive Director of an independent non-profit institute dedicated to issues of climate change and international affairs, with programmes in climate justice, global governance and international cooperation. She has also worked for or had research and teaching assignments with other organizations, including non-profit organizations, the United Nations University, Sciences Po (Paris), Catholic University (Rio de Janeiro) as well as Columbia University and New School University (New York). Presently Dr. Abdenur serves on the ECOSOC Committee for Development Policy.