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Home Newsroom News and press releases Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir takes up post as new ODIHR Director
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Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir takes up post as new ODIHR Director

WARSAW 21 July 2017
Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir of Iceland (centre) with senior staff in front of the ODIHR headquarters on her first day of work in Warsaw as the Office's Director, 21 July 2017. (OSCE/Agnieszka Rembowska) Photo details

WARSAW, 21 July 2017 – Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir of Iceland assumed her new duties on Friday as Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).

Beginning her tenure, Gísladóttir stressed the importance of ODIHR’s work as the main OSCE institution in the human dimension.

“Human rights, democratic institutions and the rule of law, and tolerance and non-discrimination, have been a central part of the OSCE’s concept of security since its founding,” she said. “ODIHR’s mandate and role in assisting governments and civil society in meeting their commitments is vital.”

Gísladóttir succeeds Michael Georg Link of Germany, who headed ODIHR for three years.

Gísladóttir has 35 years of leadership experience working on human rights, democratic governance and the rule of law at the international, national and local levels. Before taking up the position of ODIHR Director, she served from 2014 as Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia at UN Women, and Country Representative to Turkey.  From 2011 to 2014 she was Country Representative of UN Women to Afghanistan.

“ODIHR’s strength lies in its hands-on approach. It is a facilitator, listening carefully and bringing experts together to address the difficult challenges OSCE participating States face,” the new ODIHR Director said. “This approach remains as relevant and important today as ever.”

From 2007 to 2009, Gísladóttir served as Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland. She was previously a Member of Parliament and Chairperson and Leader of the Social Democratic Alliance (2005 – 2009) and Mayor of the City of Reykjavik (1994 – 2003). Throughout her career, she has been involved in policy and development work in conflict and non-conflict countries, aimed at strengthening democratic institutions and human rights.

In the early years of her political career, in 1982, Gísladóttir was one the founders of the Women’s Party, playing an important role in the progress of gender equality in Iceland.