Former Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party, president Dr Kizza Besigye is already in Geneva, Switzerland to help his wife Winnie Byanyima start her new role as new Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).
In Geneva, my first day here, @akizzabesigye & @kizzabesigye1 here to help me to start in my new role at @unaids Thks pic.twitter.com/u1eZAie4ls
— Winnie Byanyima (@Winnie_Byanyima) November 3, 2019
Byanyima was appointed to the position in August this year.
Before joining UNAIDS, the Ugandan leader on women’s rights, democratic governance and peace building was the Executive Director of Oxfam International since May 1, 2013.
“I am honoured to be joining UNAIDS as the Executive Director at such a critical time in the response to HIV,” said Ms Byanyima. “The end of AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 is a goal that is within the world’s reach, but I do not underestimate the scale of the challenge ahead. Working with all its partners, UNAIDS must continue to speak up for the people left behind and champion human rights as the only way to end the epidemic,” said Byanyima after being appointed recently.
She began her career as a champion of marginalized communities and women 30 years ago as a member of parliament in the National Assembly of Uganda. In 2004, she became the Director of Women and Development at the African Union Commission, working on the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, an international human rights instrument that became an important tool for reducing the disproportionate effect of HIV on the lives of women in Africa.
Byanyima holds an advanced degree in mechanical engineering (in energy conservation and the environment) from the Cranfield Institute of Technology and an undergraduate degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Manchester.
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