Ivorian Nicole Flora Boni Kouassi Appointed New UN Resident Coordinator in Haiti
By La Rédaction · Port-au-Prince · · 2 min read · Updated 24 April 2026
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PORT-AU-PRINCE.— United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has announced the appointment of Ms. Nicole Flora Boni Kouassi, a national of Côte d'Ivoire, as Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), as well as UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in the country.
She succeeds Swedish diplomat Ingeborg Ulrika Ulfsdotter Richardson, who was commended by Mr. Guterres for her dedication, leadership, and unwavering commitment to the values and objectives of the United Nations.
With over twenty-two years of experience within the UN system, Ms. Boni Kouassi is expected to bring solid expertise in sustainable development, peacebuilding, security, and humanitarian action to her new role.
Before her appointment in Haiti, she served as the Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Niger since 2022. Between 2019 and 2022, she held the position of UNDP Resident Representative in Burundi, while also serving as interim Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in 2021.
Previously, Ms. Boni Kouassi held several strategic positions, including Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP in Djibouti and Niger, as well as Senior UN Coherence Specialist at the organization's headquarters in New York.
A medical doctor by training, Ms. Boni Kouassi holds a doctorate in medicine from Félix Houphouët-Boigny University (formerly University of Cocody) in Abidjan, as well as a Master's in Public Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Maryland, USA.
In addition to her native language, Baoulé, she is fluent in French and English, major assets for facilitating dialogue between national and international partners in Haiti.
Ms. Boni Kouassi's assumption of duty comes at a pivotal moment for Haiti, which is facing a severe political, security, and humanitarian crisis. The United Nations hopes that her solid multisectoral experience and commitment to human development will strengthen cooperation between BINUH, the Haitian government, and civil society.
In this context, the new coordinator will have the challenging task of fostering a climate conducive to stability and institutional recovery, thereby reorienting the UN's approach in Haiti.
Her arrival is seen as a gesture of confidence and continuity in the cooperation between the UN and Haiti, at a time when the international community is multiplying initiatives to help the country return to democratic governance and sustainable development, and is urging leaders to move towards organizing elections.
Jean Mapou
