Our Team in Tanzania

Ms. Susan Ngongi Namondo was appointed UN Resident Coordinator in Tanzania in November 2024, representing the UN Secretary-General and leading the UN Country Team in its work across 23 agencies. She coordinates the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2022-2027), supporting Tanzania's national priorities, Sustainable Development Goals, and Africa Agenda 2063.

With over 25 years in development, including senior roles in four UN agencies, Ms. Namondo has extensive experience in policy and programme planning. She previously served as Resident Coordinator in Uganda and Eritrea and held leadership positions with UNICEF in Ghana, Comoros, and Liberia. Her early career includes roles with the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute, Caritas Internationalis, and Catholic Relief Services.

A Cameroonian national, Ms. Namondo holds dual bachelor's degrees from the University of Maryland and master’s degrees in public administration from Columbia University and in animal health from the University of Reading.

Dr. Nyabenyi Tipo has over 30 years’ experience in development work, she holds a Master’s Degree in Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics from Nairobi University and a Bachelor of Veterinary Science from Khartoum University, she took up the position of FAO Country Representative in Sierra Leone in 2016 where she supported government counterparts in their efforts to improve food and nutrition security for Sierra Leone to achieve zero hunger by 2030.

Prior to her work with FAO, Tipo was the Country Director for African Development Solutions where she designed and implemented a multi-million recovery programme for South Sudan returned population. And in 2007 – 2011, she worked as a technical advisor for Veterinaries Sans Frontiers Belgium where she supported the South Sudan government to formulate national livestock policies, disease control strategies, and instituting transboundary disease control protocols with the neighboring countries.

Caroline Mugalla, a highly accomplished professional, is the newly appointed Resident Director for the East African region at the International Labour Organization (ILO), commencing her role on January 1, 2024. A Kenyan citizen born in 1981, Ms Mugalla holds a Master's in Business Administration with a focus on Human Resource Management from Kenya Methodist University and a Bachelor of Science in Biology Major and Chemistry Minor from the University of Eastern Africa Baraton.

With a career spanning nearly two decades, Ms Mugalla has demonstrated her exceptional leadership capabilities. She began her journey in 2005 at Kenya's Central Organisation of Trade Unions, evolving through various roles, including gender and training, social dialogue, and good governance. Notably, from 2013 to her recent appointment, she served as the Executive Director of the East Africa Trade Union Confederation (EATUC), making history as the first female to lead a sub-regional trade union organization in Africa.

During her tenure, she championed social dialogue in the East African Community, played a pivotal role in political policy advocacy, and successfully mobilized resources for the organization's vision and mission. Ms Mugalla is recognized globally, having been featured in the Netherlands in the FNV Magazine 2020 as a top Woman Trade Unionist Leader worldwide and acknowledged for her leadership by various prestigious awards such as the 2015 CFC Bank Rising Star Awards.

Currently, she contributes her expertise as a member of the World Economic Forum Joint Trade and Labour Steering Group and serves as an Evaluator for the Prince Talal International Prize by the Arab Gulf Program for Development. Ms Mugalla's wealth of experience and achievements position her as a dynamic leader in the field of labor relations and policy advocacy.

Martin Odiit has more than 30 years’ international and national experience in the field of health and development in Eastern and Southern Africa and the Caribbean. Before his assignment to Tanzania, he served in the positions of UNAIDS Senior Strategic Information Adviser and Country Director ad interim in Zimbabwe. He has also served as UNAIDS Country Director in Somalia and in Guyana and Suriname and before that as UNAIDS Strategic Information Advisor in Namibia. He has held various Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist positions in the UNAIDS Uganda office, the Uganda HIV/AIDS Control Project funded by the World Bank, and the USAID-funded Regional Centre for Quality of Health Care in Kampala. Martin holds a Medical Doctor's degree from Makerere University Kampala, a Master’s in Public Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Edinburgh. Martin is married and is an Uganda national.

Mr. Busatti is a national of Italy and has over three-decade long experience working on refugees and international migration issues, within government, non-government, the UN and the private sector. He joined IOM in 1996 to work on the demobilization in Angola and since then held several positions both at Headquarters and in field missions of IOM. He was regional program coordinator in Nairobi (1997- 2000), then served as COM in Albania (2000-2006) and Turkey (2006 -2010). He was appointed head of the Special Liaison Mission to France (2010-2012), before becoming COM in Nepal (2012 -2016) where, among other things, he led the IOM response to the 2015 earthquake. Starting in 2016, at IOM Headquarters his main responsibility has been to oversee the policy and procedural aspects connected to IOM formal entry in the UN system. In this role he helped spearhead the IOM’s integration within the UN and its alignment to the 2030 Agenda. Mr. Busatti is an expert in disaster management and recovery, irregular migration, labor and human development and migration policy support. He holds a MSc. in Political Science and a post graduate diploma in international relations from the University of Florence (Italy) and a Master in Defense Administration (MDA) from Cranfield University and the Royal Military College of Science (United Kingdom).

With over two decades in international development, Mr. Komatsubara has served UNDP since 2002. Most recently, he was the Resident Representative in Malawi and TICAD Programme Adviser at UNDP Head Quarters, New York. In Ghana, he excelled as Deputy Resident Representative, achieving the highest program delivery for UNDP. He has also served as Country Programme Adviser at UNDP HQ, focusing on Southern African countries and Human Security program formulation. Before UNDP, he held pivotal roles at Keidanren, Tokyo (1992-2002). A Japanese national, he holds an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics (LSE) and a BA in International Relations from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies.

With over 13 years of experience at the United Nations Environment Programme, Clara has been instrumental in coordinating, promoting, and advocating for the integration of environmental sustainability into Tanzania's development agenda. She is now applying her expertise to drive similar efforts in Namibia.

Before joining UNEP, Clara spent 7 years with World Vision, working both in Melbourne, Australia, and Arusha, Tanzania. During this time, she managed partnerships and programs focused on sustainable and transformational development, with a particular emphasis on Tanzania, Somalia, and Chad.

Clara holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry and a Master of Science degree in Dryland Biodiversity. She is a strong advocate for an integrated and holistic approach to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, prioritizing collaboration and teamwork to create lasting, meaningful impact.

Mr Michel Toto, a seasoned diplomat, brings over twenty years of international experience in multilateral cooperation. He joined the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1999, where he has held various positions, including Deputy Liaison Officer, Liaison Officer, and Chief of the Section for Cooperation with Member States in the Africa Department of UNESCO, serving in these roles until 2011. Prior to his current appointment, Mr Toto served as Chief of Protocol of the Organization and Introducer of Ambassadors to the Director-General from 2011 to 2022, providing regular support to the 194 permanent delegations accredited to UNESCO, Paris. Since June 2022, he has been serving as the Head of Office and Country Representative to the United Republic of Tanzania at the UNESCO Dar es Salaam Office.

Mark Bryan Schreiner is UNFPA’s Country Representative, United Republic of Tanzania since 2022. Mark previously served as the UNFPA Representative in Rwanda from 2017- 2021.

For the past two decades, Mark has served the United Nations as a distinguished leader and advocate for women and young people's health and development.

He has held management positions with UNFPA in the Pacific Sub-Regional Office in Fiji Islands, Pakistan, Eritrea, South Africa, Nigeria and Africa Division of UNFPA Headquarters in New York. Mark also worked with UNEP in Kenya and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific in Thailand.

Mark is married and a national of Canada.

Elke Wisch has been the UNICEF Representative to the United Republic of Tanzania, based in Dar es Salaam, since August 2023. With 27 years of dedicated service, she brings extensive experience in leading UNICEF's efforts, focusing on the rights of children and families in developmental, transitional, and emergency contexts. Ms. Wisch has previously served in various countries, including Rwanda, Liberia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, Afghanistan, Myanmar, and Uganda.

Before joining UNICEF, Ms. Wisch worked in conflict resolution organizations and academic institutions in Germany and the United States. She is a German national with a Master of Arts in Social and Political Sciences from the University of Munich and a Master of Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Ms. Ansermet is the UNIDO Officer in Charge in the United Republic of Tanzania, covering also Burundi, Malawi, Mauritius, Seychelles and the Union of Comoros. She has about 30 years of experience in international field with more than 20 years in development cooperation. She is currently supporting the formulation and facilitating the implementation of UNIDO portfolio in these countries.

Leading the UNIDO Field Office in Tanzania, Ms Ansermet is dedicated to support the country’s efforts to support SMEs, women and youth through their integration into sustainable value chains. She is convinced that a new circular economic model, that protects the environment at the design stage of supply chain has to be put in place for the sake of the planet and its people. Previously in the Department of Agri-business in UNIDO Headquarter in Venna, she focused her work to fight biodiversity loss, deforestation and climate change while empowering rural communities.

Ms. Ansermet has extensive experience in the field having worked as a UNIDO Representative in Madagascar from 2011 to 2016, also covering Seychelles, Mauritius and Comoros. In Madagascar, she developed the UNIDO portfolio on renewable energy, creative industries and sustainable sugar value chain. From 2006 to 2010, she led the process of opening up UNIDO’s regional office in South Africa and developed a programme on energy efficiency.

From 1999 to 2006, she worked for the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland, where she implemented trade development projects in West Africa, Vietnam, China and South Africa. Ms. Ansermet has also worked in humanitarian contexts with the International Committee of the Red Cross. She played a key role in programme implementation during the conflicts in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia. She is an economist by training from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland. She is motivated to create, innovate and implement positive changes for the people and the planet.

Hodan Addou is the UN Women Country Representative to Tanzania since April 2018. She has over 30 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 advisory, regional program management and coordination positions in East, Central and Southern Africa as well as at Headquarters in New York.

Ms. Barbara Bentum-Williams Dotse’s career with UNHCR spans 27 years working in Mozambique, Mali, Guinea, Switzerland, Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, and Rwanda.

She has served in senior positions in UNHCR, including as Assistant Regional Representative (Administration) in the Regional Office in Southern Africa, Deputy Representative (Operations) in Rwanda, and Principal Risk Management & Compliance Adviser in the Regional Bureau for East, Horn of Africa, and the Great Lakes.

Her career outside UNHCR include her roles as Senior Vice President of Databank Financial Services Ghana Limited and Coordinator of the Ghana Investors Advisory Council Secretariat.

Ms. Bentum-Williams Dotse holds an MBA from the European Institute of Business Administration (INSEAD), an MPhil in the Economics & Politics of Development, an MA, and a BA(Hons) degree in Economics and Social & Political Sciences from the University of Cambridge, UK.

She is a Ghanaian national. Married with three children. Fluent in English and French.

Public health physician with experience in:

* Supporting country-led, coordinated action for sustainable development initiatives with a focus on health and wellbeing.
* Leading and coordinating multi-sectoral teams, at international, national, subnational including community levels, in support of identified health priorities.
* Designing and implementing organizational reforms and innovations, aimed at enhancing efficiency, effectiveness and accountability.

Dr Gasasira has held positions of increasing responsibility in the World Health Organization and in the United Nations System. He has served as Director of the Office of the WHO Regional Director for Africa (2023-2025), WHO Representative to Zimbabwe (2018-2022) and WHO Representative to Liberia (2015-2018). Other positions that he has held include Ebola Technical Coordinator, WHO-Liberia (July-October 2014), Polio Eradication Coordinator for the WHO African Region (2013-2014) and Immunization Team Leader, WHO Nigeria (2006-2013).

Within the UN System, Dr Gasasira served as UN Resident Coordinator ad interim, Zimbabwe (Oct 2021-Jan 2022) and Director of Health, UN Emergency Mission on Ebola Response (2014-2015).

Dr Gasasira has co-authored over 60 articles in peer-reviewed journals. He is the recipient of several awards.

Rainer Frauenfeld has led UNOPS operations in East and Southern Africa since 2014, based in Nairobi. In this role, he oversees a broad portfolio of development, humanitarian, and infrastructure initiatives across the region.

Before this appointment, he served as UNOPS Global Lead for Risk Reduction and Recovery at the organization’s headquarters in Copenhagen (2011–2014). From 2005 to 2011, he established and led UNOPS' recovery operations in Sri Lanka following the Indian Ocean tsunami. Earlier in his career, Rainer managed humanitarian and recovery programs in complex environments including Haiti, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Ethiopia, and Sri Lanka.

He holds a Master’s degree in Law from Austria and a Master’s in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.

Ronald Tran Ba Huy took over his new role as Country Director and Representative in Tanzania in September 2024.

Ronald joined WFP in 2016 as Country Director and Representative in Haiti where he notably managed the emergency response to Hurricane Mathew and supported the government in developing the National SDG Strategy for Food Security and Nutrition. He was then appointed in 2019 as Deputy Director of the Research, Assessment and Monitoring Division at WFP’s Headquarters where he was also responsible for leading the development of the WFP Strategic Plan (2022–2026).

Prior to joining WFP, Ronald contributed to the establishment of the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis where he held a number of positions, including that of Regional Manager for West and Central Africa. He started his professional career in the private sector as a management consultant in strategy development and project management across various sectors, including banking, retail, transportation and information technologies.

Ronald graduated from the Political Science School of Paris (Sciences Po. Paris) and the Wharton Business School of the University of Pennsylvania. He was a research fellow at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Seth S. Meng has been the IFAD Representative to the United Republic of Tanzania, based in Dar es Salaam since January 2025. With over 20 years of professional experience in rural development, Seth‘s work spans the Asia and Pacific region, including Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and India. In 2023, Seth was honored with the IFAD Staff Leadership Award. Prior to his move to Tanzania, he served as the Interim Country Director for Mongolia, the Country Programme Coordinator for Cambodia, and as a Quality Assurance Specialist with IFAD's Quality Assurance Group.

Before joining IFAD, Seth was a Senior Officer at Cambodia's Ministry of Planning, where he played a key role in shaping national development strategies. He also lectured at Norton University in Cambodia. His career further expanded with roles at UNOPS and in the private sector, broadening his understanding of diverse economic environments and enhancing his approach to development challenges.

Seth is a Cambodian national with a Master of Business Administration from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand and a Bachelor of Economics from the Royal Faculty of Economics in Cambodia.

Prior to assuming her position in Tanzania, Ms. Mallick was the Country Manager in The Gambia for the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). She was also the COVID-19 Outbreak Coordinator for the UN System in The Gambia. Ms. Mallick has over 18 years of international development experience, of which more than 12 years in conflict/post-conflict countries, and has extensively held leadership roles managing country offices and programmes across low-income and middle-income countries, small island developing states and transition countries. She was UNDP Deputy Resident Representative (Programme and Operations) in Guyana, Bhutan and North Korea/DPRK.

Ms. Mallick has worked in a variety of different countries including Afghanistan, Darfur/Sudan (where she was also the acting Head of Office), the Solomon Islands (as Officer in Charge and MDG Manager) in the South Pacific, and Sri Lanka. Ms. Mallick has also worked in Washington DC at the World Bank (Agriculture and Rural Development department), for USAID’s Bureau of Economic Growth and Trade/Office of Women in Development; and at the Brookings Institution – Foreign Policy department.

Zulqarnain Hussain Anjum brings extensive experience with over two decades in humanitarian and development work, specializing in refugee protection and assistance, durable solutions, program management, and operational leadership. Currently, he serves as the Acting Representative in Tanzania for UNHCR, where he plays a pivotal role in guiding initiatives focused on refugee protection and durable solutions. Before this, he was the Assistant Representative (Operations) in Mozambique from 2021 to 2024, where he contributed to inter-agency responses by protecting and assisting internally displaced persons under State leadership.

In earlier roles, Mr Anjum served as the UNHCR Country Representative in Liberia from 2019 to 2020, where he implemented durable solutions for displaced population from surrounding countries. His role as Senior Desk Officer in Geneva from 2015 to 2019 enhanced his expertise in coordinating international support structures for refugee protection and durable solutions, while his work as Senior Staff Development Officer in Budapest allowed him to focus on capacity-building for staff across UNHCR. His foundational operations management and program experience spans key roles in Uganda, Yemen, Sudan, Kenya, and Nigeria, equipping him with a deep understanding of the complexities of humanitarian operations in diverse settings and development challenges.