PR84130

GENEVA, May 25, 2020 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

The Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) and UNOPS

announce the appointment of Mr Dominic O'Neill as the new Executive Director of

WSSCC. Mr O'Neill brings to the position a wealth of knowledge and an array of

experiences in the development industry on a national and global level. He will

commence this new assignment in September 2020.

Mr O'Neill currently serves as Chief Operating Officer for the World Wildlife

Fund International. He is also a non-executive Director on the Board of the

Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN). Additionally, he has assumed the

position of the United Kingdom's Executive Director on the Board of the African

Development Bank, where he chaired the committee on human resources,

information technology and administration.

"WSSCC is at a critical point in its 30-year history as it evolves into the

Sanitation and Hygiene Fund by 2021. Mr Dominic O'Neill's understanding of both

public health and environmental issues as well as his political acumen makes

him the ideal candidate to lead the organization through this transformation,"

said Ms Hind Othman-Khatib, Executive Chair of WSSCC.

The Steering Committee of WSSCC recently approved the new 2021-2025 strategy,

under which the organization is evolving into a global financing mechanism, the

Sanitation and Hygiene Fund

[https://www.wsscc.org/2020/05/06/press-release-wsscc-approved-to-become-the-san

itation-and-hygiene-fund/ ], whose mission is to address the void in the global

response to the sanitation, hygiene and menstrual health crisis. The new Fund

will formally begin operations on 1 January 2021.

Mr O'Neill joined the World Wildlife Fund in 2017, after 15 years with the

Department for International Development (DFID), the UK government's foreign

aid agency, most recently as head of the United Nations and Commonwealth

Department overseeing the UK's funding to various UN agencies. Prior to this,

Mr O'Neill worked for DFID in Yemen, Iraq, Sierra Leone and Nepal and as an

Environmental Health Policy advisor. Prior experience also includes serving as

a District Environmental Officer for the Namibian Ministry of Health and as a

Country Director for Raleigh International.

"I am very honoured to join WSSCC at this transformational moment," Mr O'Neill

said. "Sanitation and hygiene are key to so many things, including public

health, environmental protection, and achieving the Sustainable Development

Goals. It is time to scale up solutions, based on a multi-stakeholder approach,

and ensure sanitation and hygiene for all."

Born in the UK, Mr O'Neill has qualifications in environmental health and water.

- Picture is available at AP Images (http://www.apimages.com) -

About WSSCC

The Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council is a UNOPS-hosted

[https://www.unops.org/ ]membership organization with 30 years of expertise

working to improve sanitation and hygiene for those most left behind and least

able to respond. WSSCC has been focusing on SDG 6.2 (sanitation, hygiene and

menstrual health). Learn more on our website [https://www.wsscc.org/ ]and

connect with us on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/WatSanCollabCouncil/ ]

and Twitter [https://twitter.com/WSSCCouncil ].

Press contact

Hiroyuki Saito, Head of Corporate Communications and Advocacy

Tel: +41 22 552 5212; Mobile: +41 79 684 3598; Email: hiroyuki.saito@wsscc.org

Available for interviews

- Hind Khatib-Othman, Executive Chair of WSSCC

Source:  WSSCC