Senior UN official named as new peacebuilding chief
7 August 2008 - Assistant Secretary-General in the Department of Field Support (DFS) Jane Holl Lute has been tapped to head the
United Nations office tasked with assisting countries around the world to stabilize and rebuild their economies and
societies after armed conflicts, it was announced today.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed Ms. Holl Lute, who will serve as Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding
Support in her new capacity, to replace Carolyn McAskie, who has led the Peacebuilding Support Office since its creation
in 2006.
Ms. Holl Lute, a United States national, joined the world body in 2003 as Assistant Secretary-General in the Department
of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) and oversaw the creation of DFS from 2007 until this May.
Her "background puts her in a unique position to ensure that the PBSO will continue to grow in addressing the challenges
of a convenor within the UN system, drawing on development, security, political, humanitarian and human rights actors in
support of the recently established Peacebuilding Commission," Mr. Ban said in a statement.
Furthermore, Ms. Holl Lute's experience will help her in managing the growth of the Peacebuilding Fund and supporting UN
efforts to help countries emerging from conflict, he added.
Prior to taking up service with the UN, she worked as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the UN
Foundation and the Better World Fund, two entities created by philanthropist Ted Turner.
The new peacebuilding chief's extensive résumé also includes positions at the Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly
Conflict, the Woodrow Wilson Centre for International Scholars and the National Security Council of the White House.
Ms. Holl Lute, who also had a distinguished career in the US Army, has a Ph.D. in Political Science from Stanford
University as well as a Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University.
ENDS