Our Team in Tanzania

Antonio José Canhandula is the current Representative of UNHCR in Tanzania. For over 30 years, he has served UNHCR in different capacities, in 12 countries. Before joining the United Nations, Mr. Canhandula was a teacher of French, English, Mathematics and Biology in his home country – Mozambique. He later joined his country’s foreign service and served as a diplomat to Ethiopia and the Organization of African Unity (OAU). Following this, he took on several assignments as a translator for various OAU conferences in Ethiopia, until he joined UNHCR in 1989. José thrives as a management coach while developing human capacities. He is married and has four children.

A Ugandan national, Ms. Musisi has more than 23 years of leadership and experience in the development arena. She has worked in a wide variety of context and led innovative initiatives in Local Economic Development, Democratic Governance, Poverty Reduction, Social Mobilization, Civil Society Empowerment, Gender and Development; Business and Private Sector Engagement and Development Financing. She has served for UN-Habitat, UN Women and UNDP in Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia in various capacities. Musisi Holds MA Degree in Gender Analysis in Development from the University of East Anglia, UK; Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Extension and Women from the University of Reading, UK and a BA in Business Administration Management from Daystar University College in Kenya.

Dr. Tigest is a paediatrician from Ethiopia with more than 30 years of national and international experience in the field of medicine and public health. She previously served as the WHO Country Representative for the Kingdom of Eswatini. Dr. Tigest spent a decade in the WHO Regional Office for Africa as the Director of the Family and Reproductive Health and the Health Promotion clusters. Prior to joining WHO in 2001, she worked at the Ministry of Health in Ethiopia for more than a decade as a senior expert in child health. In addition to a degree of Doctor of Medicine and Specialty Degree in Paediatrics and Child Health from Addis Ababa University, she holds a Masters of Public Health Degree, with a focus on international health, from the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health. She is a recipient of a Gold Medal Award from the Ethiopian Medical Association for best health research.

Hodan Addou is the UN Women Representative to Tanzania since April 2018. She has over 25 years of experience in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment. Prior to Tanzania, she served as the Country Representative in Uganda, Zimbabwe and in Sudan. She also held senior policy advisor, country and regional program coordination positions in East, Central and Southern Africa as well as at Headquarters in New York.

Jacqueline Mahon is UNFPA’s Country Representative, United Republic of Tanzania. Prior to this, Jacqueline was based in UNFPA’s Headquarters, New York, where she served as Senior Policy Adviser in the Organization’s Technical Division, heading strategic policy engagement in global health and health systems. She has worked with other organizations, including the Aga Khan Foundation; Overseas Development Institute (ODI Fellow); Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation; the University of Witwatersrand and the World Bank Group. Jacqueline has substantial experience in policy engagement, programme management and operations, having worked at both global and country-level (East and Southern Africa and South Asia).

Dr Zekeng brings 33 years of experience in Global Health Diplomacy, AIDS response and development at various level and capacities – Service Provider, Researcher, Strategist, Advocate, Activist, Programme Implementer, Programme Manager and Coordinator, Policy Maker both in his native Cameroon and in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. He joined UNAIDS in 2005 and served as Deputy Director, UNAIDS Regional Support Team for West & Central Africa, Dakar, Senegal (2012-2017), UNAIDS Country Director in Ghana (2007-2012), Sierra Leone and Liberia (2005-2007) and the United Republic of Tanzania (2017 to present).

Over 15 years of substantive leadership experience in international development and trade, fortune 500 corporate-centred experience and management consulting in USA; management of global and regional operations; expertise in impact investing, financing for development and solutions. Peter has served the United Nations in different capacities at national, regional and global levels and has led cross-cutting development initiatives and innovations in local economic development, climate resilience, clean energy, food security, women economic empowerment, private sector and capital markets development, knowledge management and partnerships across Africa and Asia.

Dr. Qasim Sufi, is a German citizen of Somali origin; Medical Doctor, Health Manager and Epidemiologist by profession; has more than 34 years of national and international experience as a humanitarian worker in Somalia, Kenya, South Sudan (UN OLS South), Cote d’Ivoire, Indonesia, Sir Lanka, West and Central Africa region based in Ghana, Chad and Tanzania. Is with IOM for 17 years (from January 2014) and held different technical and managerial responsibilities with the current been IOM Chief of Mission to the United Republic of Tanzania. He has strong experience in programs, policies and liaison in emergencies, due to natural and man-made disasters i.e. Tsunami in Indonesia (From 2004-05) and Libya Crisis (From 2011-15), Earth Quake in Kagera, Tanzania (2016) recovery, and developmental. He is fluent in Bravanese, Somali, German, English, Italian, French, Arabic and Swahili languages.

Sarah Gordon-Gibson has been working for the World Food Programme for over 20 years. She took up her duties as Representative in Tanzania in September 2020. She also served as a Representative in Jordan and Lao PDR. Prior to these assignments, she was the Regional Programme Manager for the Syria Crisis Response, covering Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey. Before her position in the Middle East, she served as Deputy Country Director in Niger, Myanmar and Tanzania. Her previous positions have been in Mauritania, Armenia, and Morocco. She holds a master’s in law from the University of London, and a University Degree in Law from the University of Paris I, Panthéon-Sorbonne.

Shalini Bahuguna joined in December 2019 as the UNICEF Representative in the United Republic of Tanzania. Prior to this assignment, Ms. Bahuguna was the UNICEF Deputy Representative in Ethiopia, a role she held from August 2016. She joined UNICEF as Chief, Social Policy in Nigeria in 2009 and has also served as UNICEF’s Deputy Representative in Myanmar. Ms. Bahuguna is a development professional with experience across Asia and Africa in varying country contexts. She began her career with a Water and Sanitation NGO in India and moved on to work for the Government of India – World Bank water sector reform programme. She has extensive experience as an aid manager and social development professional with the Department for International Development (DFID) in India, China, Indonesia and Afghanistan.

Mr. Kargbo is the UNIDO representative to Tanzania, Mauritius and the Secretariat of the East African Community (EAC). He has national and international work experience of over 30 years in teaching/research, organizational change and development work. He has held various positions in NGOs, academia and the UN system (UNDP and UNIDO). Before his current position, he worked in the UNIDO Regional Office in Ethiopia, overseeing operations in Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda, as well as activities related to the African Union Commission. Mr. Kargbo holds a B.Sc.in Agricultural Education from the University of Sierra Leone, M.Sc.in Rural Development and PhD in Agricultural Economics from the Georg-August University of Goettingen, Germany.

Tirso Dos Santos, a national of Mozambique, is the Head of Office and UNESCO Representative to Tanzania. Mr. Dos Santos joined UNESCO in February 1992, having served in both programme and managerial positions. Before that, Mr. Dos Santos was the National Director for Teacher Education at the Ministry of Education of his home country - Mozambique. Mr. Dos Santos pursued university studies in various countries and universities, having acquired a BA degree in Geography (University Eduardo Mondlane – UEM); a Master of Science degree in Project Management, with specialization in Oil and Gas (University of Liverpool, UK); and a Doctorate in Education (Ed. Doc, Belize).

Mr. Chibebe currently holds the position of Director; ILO Country Office for Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Burundi in East Africa. He previously held positions of founding President of the Union of Railway Craftsmen, General Secretary of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, Chairman of Zimbabwe Crisis Coalition, Steering Committee Member of Global Partnership for Effective Development Corporation and Deputy Secretary-General of International Trade Union Confederation.