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Barham Salih’s background and experience make him well suited to lead UNHCR Filippo Grandi
Immediate past United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi has applauded the election of Barham Salih as his successor.
He said Salih’s background and experience make him well suited to lead UNHCR.
Salih was selected after a competitive process in New York that attracted candidates from various countries. Salih assumed office on 1 January 2026.
Speaking on his successor, Grandi said: “Barham Salih brings decades of high-level public service, marked by steady leadership and thoughtful diplomacy. Coming from a country recently marked by conflict, persecution and displacement, he has first-hand experience of the challenges many refugees face today. His background and experience make him well suited to lead UNHCR at a time of large-scale displacement and increasingly complex humanitarian and political challenges.”
Grandi’s 10-year tenure as High Commissioner ended on 31 December 2025. He became High Commissioner in January 2016 and led UNHCR’s response to major displacement crises worldwide, including in Syria, Ukraine and Sudan.