Major General Ganesh Kumar Shrestha
Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander
Nepal
On 25 January 2026, Major General Ganesh Kumar Shrestha of Nepal assumed the leadership of UNISFA following his appointment by the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on 2 December 2025. He succeeds Major General Robert Yaw Affram of Ghana, who served the mission for one and half years.
Major General Shrestha brings 36 years of distinguished military service in the Nepali Army and extensive UN Peacekeeping experience. Prior to his appointment, he recently served as the Assistant Chief of the Army Staff at the Nepali Army Headquarters, having previously held several senior leadership positions at the Army Headquarters including Master General of Ordnance, Division Commander of the Far Western Division, Administrative Register of Shree Birendra Military Hospital, Director of Policy and Plans, and Brigade Commander of the No 16 and No 9 Brigade HQs.
His peacekeeping experience includes serving as Sector Commander for Sector East in the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), Assistant Operations OfficerUNPROFOR in Croatia, Military Observerwith MONUC in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and UNSOM in Somalia.
Major General Shrestha holds a master’s degree in military science and strategic studies from the International College of Defence Studies, National Defence University, China. He also earned a master’s degree in economics and a bachelor’s degree in humanities and social sciences from Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal. Aside from his native Nepali, he is fluent in English and has a working knowledge of Hindi.
Brigadier General Adebowale Oladimeji Ajagbe
Deputy Force Commander
Nigeria
Brigadier General Adebowale Oladimeji Ajagbe of Nigeria assumed duties as Deputy Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) on 7 June 2026. He brings nearly three decades of military experience and extensive expertise in leadership, strategic planning, and United Nations peace operations.
While serving his country, he held a broad range of senior command and staff appointments at the national and operational levels, including serving as Commander of the 403 Amphibious Brigade under the Multinational Joint Task Force of the Lake Chad Basin Countries and as Director of Plans at the Nigerian Army Headquarters prior to his deployment to UNISFA. His career reflects sustained contributions to institutional capacity-building, operational effectiveness, and multinational collaboration.
His United Nations peacekeeping experience includes service with the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), and the African Union–United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), where he held command and staff roles. These assignments have strengthened his expertise in mission planning and in delivering complex mandates across diverse conflict environments.
Brigadier General Ajagbe is an alumnus of the Korean National Defense University and the Armed Forces Command and Staff College in Nigeria. He holds an Executive Education Certificate from the Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University, USA. He has also served as an instructor at professional military education institutions. His academic credentials include a master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Studies.
Alexander Stephane Gerard Rose
Mission Chief of Staff
France
Mr. Alexander Rose is the Mission Chief of Staff for UNISFA. He has worked with the United Nations for over 20 years, serving both in peacekeeping operations and in special political missions. During this time, he held a range of critical roles including as Humanitarian Affairs Officer, Political Affairs Officer, Best Practices Officer, Strategic Planning Officer and his current role in UNISFA.
His extensive experience includes strategic planning, conflict resolution, mission leadership, and humanitarian coordination, contributing significantly to the UN’s efforts in diverse environments.
Mr. Rose holds a PhD in Geopolitics and an MBA from the Ecole Superieur de Commerce de Paris.
Ms. Uchenna Odenigbo
Chief of Mission Support
Nigeria
Ms. Uchenna Odenigbo is the Chief of Mission Support Division of UNISFA. She assumed her role in October 2024. Ms. Odenigbo has a wealth of leadership experience, having worked across various government institutions, international consulting firms, and the UN. She has served in several United Nations Peace Operations. She spent 11 years at the UN Headquarters Field Budget and Finance Division of the Department of Field Support.
Before joining UNISFA, Ms. Odenigbo served as the Chief of Mission Support (CMS) of the UN Support Mission in Libya. Prior to that, she was the CMS of the United Nations Office for Central Africa in Libreville, the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel, the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission and the UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan.
She also served as Operations Manager at the Regional Service Centre in Entebbe. She led the DFS IPSAS project, which established the financial valuation of real estate assets across DFS-administered missions. She has considerable expertise in mission support, budget management, crisis management, mission start-ups, and liquidation activities.
Ms. Odenigbo is a Chartered Accountant and a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), United Kingdom. She holds a Master’s degree in Business Management (MBA) from Oxford Brookes University.
Helmey Hilma Laudika Abraham
Police Commissioner
Namibia
Police Commissioner Helmey Hilma Laudika Abraham from Namibia joined UNISFA in July 2025. A seasoned senior police officer with a distinguished career in the Namibian Police Force spanning nearly 30 years, Ms. Abraham has held several positions, including Technical Advisor to the Inspector General of Police on PSO and Cabinet decisions.
Prior to her deployment to UNISFA, she served as Division Head of International Relations since 2017.
Previously, she served with the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) as the Deputy Chief of UNPOL Rotations, Training Officer, Community Policing Officer, and Gender, Child and Vulnerable Persons Protection Officer.
Ms. Abraham also served as Deputy Police Commissioner of the SADC Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM) Concurrently heading the Mission Training Team, coordinating efforts with the AU, KAIPTC, IPSTC and UN agencies. She is the founder of the SAMIM Women Network.
She serves as the Women’s Network Coordinator for Police National Headquarters and the National Focal Point on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) for the Namibian Police Force. Additionally, she is seconded as Directing Staff to the Namibia International Women’s Peace Centre (IWPC), where she plays a key role in supporting the operationalization National Action Plan (NAP) on UNSCR 1325, focusing on Women, Peace, and Security.
Ms. Abraham holds a Master of Arts degree in Managing Peace and Security in Africa from Addis Ababa University, and a Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice Studies from the Namibia University of Science and Technology.
Boris-Ephrem Tchoumavi
Chief Community Liaison Officer
Côte d'Ivoire
Mr. Tchoumavi has over 18 years of experience with the United Nations. He joined UNISFA in September 2021 as the Chief Community Liaison Officer, after serving as Senior Political Affairs Officer in the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the UN Support Mission in Libya.
Prior to this, he served as the Senior Political Advisor to the UN Resident Coordinator for Burkina Faso. He also served as Political Affairs Officer with MINUSCA, UNOCA, MINUSMA and in the Department of Political Affairs in New York, supporting high-level UN leadership in the design and implementation of prevention, political, mediation and good office initiatives.
Previously, Mr. Tchoumavi served as a Human Rights Officer in the Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. He also served as an Associate Gender and Governance Expert with the UN Economic Commission for Africa.
An alumnus of the Prytanee Ministaire of Saint-Louis (Senegal), Mr. Tchoumavi holds a Maitrise de droits des affaires of the University of Cocody and a LL.M in Human Rights and Democratization in Africa from the University of Pretoria.
Zewdu Mebrat Tegen
Chief Operations and Resources Management
Ethiopia
Mr. Zewdu Mebrat Tegen joined the Mission on 2 July 2026, bringing more than 25 years of leadership experience in finance, human resources, administration and shared service delivery, including over 16 years within the United Nations system.
Before joining UNISFA, Mr. Tegen served for 5 years as Chief of the Kuwait Joint Support Office (KJSO), where he directed shared human resources, finance, payroll, travel and administrative services for multiple United Nations field missions. He also led major service transformation initiatives and oversaw the transition of KJSO services to the Regional Service Centre Entebbe (RSCE).
From July 2011 to February 2021, Mr. Tegen served as Service Line Manager and Service Delivery Manager at RSCE, leading multidisciplinary teams delivering integrated administrative services to United Nations peace operations across Africa. He also served as Umoja Foundation Site Coordinator and IPSAS Implementation Focal Point, supporting major United Nations management reforms, mission start-ups, drawdowns and liquidations.
Prior to joining the United Nations, Mr. Tegen held senior finance and accounting roles with UNICEF Denmark, the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) and the African Union Commission, following earlier public sector service in Ethiopia.
Mr. Tegen holds an MBA from Nottingham Business School and is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA).