UNISFA Leadership

Maj. Gen. General Robert Yaw AFFRAM

Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander

Major General Robert Yaw Affram, a distinguished Airborne Infantry officer of the Ghana Army with 37 years of commissioned service, arrived in Abyei 11 July 2024 to temporarily assume the roles of Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander for UNISFA. Prior to this, he held key leadership roles as Deputy Force Commander in UNMISS from January 2023 and, as Sector Commander in UNMISS (2020 – 2021) and Chief Military Personnel Officer in UNISFA (2012–2013). He has been instrumental in counter-terrorism efforts, serving as the Force Commander of the Multinational Joint Task Force under the Accra Initiative countering terrorism, south of the Sahel.

Maj Gen has extensive leadership experience in peacekeeping and international defense, having held different roles in UN and ECOWAS operations. From 1995 to 1996, he was a Military Observer in Western Sahara, and in 2009, he served as a Battalion Commander in Cote d’Ivoire. In 2004, he served as Deputy Commanding Officer in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and in 2001 as Chief Operations Officer in Sierra Leone. Earlier in his career, he served as Platoon Commander and Company Commander in Lebanon in 1989 and 1994 respectively. He also served as Platoon Commander with ECOMOG in Liberia in 1993

An expert military instructor, Maj Gen Affram has served as Second-in-Command of Ghana Military Academy and Training Schools, Director General of Training, Director General of Defence Industries (GAF) and the Director Army Operations with the Ghana Armed Forces. He has served as an airborne, freefall, and special forces trainer with Ghana’s Special Forces Training Command. He is a trained Airborne, Jumpmaster, and Pathfinder officer and an alumnus of the Nigeria National Defence College, the Joint Services Command and Staff College in the United Kingdom.

Maj Gen Affram holds Masters of Arts degrees in Defence Studies from Kings College London (KCL) and International Affairs from the University of Ghana. He also holds a master’s degree of Philosophy in Development Studies also from the University of Ghana with specializations in Defence and Strategic Studies, Counter Terrorism and Gender Studies. He has qualifications from prestigious institutions, including the US Army Airborne School and South Korea’s Special Warfare School.

     Brig. Gen. Ameer Muhammad Umrani

     Deputy Force Commander

Brigadier General Ameer Muhammad Umrani was commissioned in Pakistan Army in March 1998. He is an alumnus of the National Defence University Islamabad and the Command & Staff College Quetta. He also holds an MPhil degree in Public Policy & Strategic Security Management.

The General has a distinguished military career with the Pakistan Army spanning over 26 years. His command experience includes command of an infantry battalion and an infantry brigade. Besides, he served as Staff Officer in Formation Headquarters and at the Army Headquarters. He has also served as instructor at the School of Infantry & Tactics as well as Command & Staff College, Quetta.

The General’s previous experience in the United Nations Mission has been as UN Peacekeeper in Burundi in 2005-2006. He assumed the appointment of Deputy Force Commander in UNISFA on 31 March 2024.  

      Alexander Stephane Gerard Rose

        Chief of Staff (Civilian)

 Alexander Stephane Gerard Rose has worked over 20 years for the United Nations, both in peacekeeping operations and in special political missions. During this time, he has worked in an array of missions successively as humanitarian affairs officer, political affairs officer, best practices officer, Strategic Planning officer and since late 2017 as Chief of Staff in UNISFA. He holds a PhD in Geopolitics and an MBA from the Ecole Superieur de Commerce de Paris.   

 

     Ms. Uchenna Odenigbo

     Chief of Mission Support

Ms. Uchenna Odenigbo is the Chief of Mission Support Division of the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei. 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 United Nations. She has served in several United Nations Peace Operations, along with 11 years at the United Nations Headquarters within the Field Budget and Finance Division of the Department of Field Support (DFS).

Before joining UNISFA, Ms. Odenigbo served as the Chief of Mission Support (CMS) of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL). Prior to that, she was the CMS of the United Nations Office for Central Africa (UNOCA) in Libreville, CMS of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), and the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission (CNMC). Additionally, she served as the CMS of the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS).

Earlier in her career, she served as Operations Manager at the Regional Service Centre in Entebbe (RSCE). She also 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 also holds a Master’s degree in Business Management (MBA) from Oxford Brookes University.

    Brig. Gen. Vincent Peter MOYO

     Chief JBVMM

Brigadier General Vincent Peter MOYO, born in 1967 in Malawi, has a distinguished military career with the Malawi Defence Force spanning over 36 years. He has held various key positions, including as the Chief of Civil-Military Cooperation (CIMIC) at the Joint Malawi Defence Force Headquarters, the Commander of the 93 Infantry Brigade, Deputy Chief of Research and Development and Commanding Officer of Changalume Infantry Battalion within the Malawi Defence Force.

He also served as a Defence Advisor accredited to Ethiopia and the African Union at the Malawi Embassy in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia from 2012 to 2018.Brigadier General Moyo holds an Executive Master of Arts in Peace and Security in Africa obtained at Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia and a Diploma in International Studies obtained at Zimbabwe National Defence University.

In his UN experience, Brigadier General MOYO served as Deputy Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) Commander with MONUSCO from 2019 to 2020, Staff Officer in UNAMID in Darfur from 2008 to 2009, Malawi Support Contingent Commander in 2006 in Kisangani (MONUC) and as a Military Observer (MONUC) from 2004 to 2005.

     Violet LUSALA

     Police Commissioner

Ms. Lusala is a seasoned officer from Kenya’s National Police Service. With a degree in Criminology and Security Studies, specializing in Security Management, Mrs Lusala, has built a distinguished career in the Police service spanning nearly 30 years during which she rose through the ranks.

Known for her professionalism,  and positive attitude, she has been greatly privileged to hold various leadership and strategic positions within the National Police Service – (Directorate of Criminal Investigation) - as Deputy Director quality assurance, head of Regional Criminal Investigation, head of County Criminal Investigation, head of Training department, head of Divisional Criminal Investigation, head of Serious Crime unit, head of Anti-Fraud Unit Telekom Kenya Limited Company, Chief Instructor Directorate of Criminal Investigations Academy. She has served as police also joined UNISFA as Police Commissioner in 2021 and brings two years of experience from her work with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).