Mr. Thomas Kontogeorgos
Chief of Disarmament Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) Section,
United Nations Department of Peace Operations (DPO)
Mr. Thomas Kontogeorgos is currently the Chief of the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) Section of the United Nations Department of Peace Operations at the UN Headquarters. The Section supports processes and programmes that aim to demobilize members of armed groups, encourage them to lay down their weapons, leave the group and return to civilian life. He was appointed to the position in March 2016, after working as a DDR officer in the Section for almost two years. He has a diploma in Mechanical Engineering and holds a Masters in International Humanitarian Assistance.
Thomas has more than 24 years of service and experience with the United Nations, the European Union and NGOs. This includes 17 years with UN peacekeeping missions serving as Civil Affairs Officer in Kosovo and Lebanon (UNMIK: United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo UNIFIL: United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon). And he worked as Senior DDR Officer and DDR Programme officer for the office of the DSRSG/RC/HC in Haiti (Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General/ Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator).
He started working at the UN Headquarters DDR Section in the summer of 2014. As DDR officer, he worked on supporting the missions and field officers of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Colombia, Burundi and Haiti on the implementation and evaluation of national DDR programmes. In particular, he supported the voluntary disarmament process of the Democratic Forces for the Liberations of Rwanda (FDLR) group to Rwanda and the voluntary repatriation of M-23 group from Uganda to DRC. After being appointed Chief of the Section in 2016, he managed the development of planning for Disarmament Demobilization, reinsertion and reintegration procedures for ex-combatants for several United Nations missions (currently more than 17), including Mali, the Central African Republic, Somalia, Libya and Colombia.
Throughout these experiences, Thomas has worked in versatile environments and sometimes arduous conditions, such as in Montenegro, Mexico, and in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake. During his time in the UN mission in Lebanon, he developed a pioneering environmental strategy that promoted stronger environmental responsibility within the mission. Today environmental practices form an integral part of peacekeeping missions. As DDR officer in Haiti, he led a “Community Violence Reduction” programme, whose lessons learned are now broadly applied in other UN missions worldwide.
Mr. Kontogeorgos currently lives in New York with his wife and two children.
Thomas has more than 24 years of service and experience with the United Nations, the European Union and NGOs. This includes 17 years with UN peacekeeping missions serving as Civil Affairs Officer in Kosovo and Lebanon (UNMIK: United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo UNIFIL: United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon). And he worked as Senior DDR Officer and DDR Programme officer for the office of the DSRSG/RC/HC in Haiti (Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General/ Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator).
He started working at the UN Headquarters DDR Section in the summer of 2014. As DDR officer, he worked on supporting the missions and field officers of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Colombia, Burundi and Haiti on the implementation and evaluation of national DDR programmes. In particular, he supported the voluntary disarmament process of the Democratic Forces for the Liberations of Rwanda (FDLR) group to Rwanda and the voluntary repatriation of M-23 group from Uganda to DRC. After being appointed Chief of the Section in 2016, he managed the development of planning for Disarmament Demobilization, reinsertion and reintegration procedures for ex-combatants for several United Nations missions (currently more than 17), including Mali, the Central African Republic, Somalia, Libya and Colombia.
Throughout these experiences, Thomas has worked in versatile environments and sometimes arduous conditions, such as in Montenegro, Mexico, and in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake. During his time in the UN mission in Lebanon, he developed a pioneering environmental strategy that promoted stronger environmental responsibility within the mission. Today environmental practices form an integral part of peacekeeping missions. As DDR officer in Haiti, he led a “Community Violence Reduction” programme, whose lessons learned are now broadly applied in other UN missions worldwide.
Mr. Kontogeorgos currently lives in New York with his wife and two children.
