UN chief appoints Belgium's Alexander De Croo as new UN development agency head

By Merve Aydogan

HAMILTON, Canada (AA) - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed Alexander De Croo of Belgium as the new administrator of the UN Development Program (UNDP) for a four-year term, following the General Assembly's confirmation on Monday.

Guterres, "following consultations with the Executive Board of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), wrote to the President of the General Assembly requesting the General Assembly to confirm Alexander De Croo of Belgium as the new Administrator of UNDP for a term of four years," said a statement by his spokesperson.

De Croo "succeeds Achim Steiner of Germany, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his leadership and commitment to the Organization," the statement said.

Guterres also extended appreciation to Haoliang Xu, noting that he "is serving as Acting Administrator until Mr. De Croo assumes his position."

Highlighting De Croo's career in public service, "advancing global solidarity, combining political leadership, development cooperation, and innovation," the statement noted that he served as Belgium's prime minister from 2020 to 2025 and as deputy prime minister in multiple roles.

"He worked closely with multilateral institutions to steer structural change for people in some of the world’s most vulnerable regions, having consistently supported UNDP as a key partner," it added.