Our leadership over time

Learn about our Executive Directors who have driven UNOPS commitment to delivering solutions and results where needs have been greatest.

Jorge Moreira da Silva

April 2023 - present

Mr. Moreira da Silva has extensive public and development sector experience, with a strong focus on climate change, energy and the environment.

Previously, he was Director of the Development Co-operation Directorate at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development as well as Portugal’s Minister for the Environment, Territorial Planning and Energy; Secretary of State on Environment; and Secretary of State on Science and Higher Education.

Mr. Moreira da Silva was also Senior Environmental Finance Adviser and Programme Manager on Climate Change Innovative Finance at the UNDP..

A Portuguese national, he has an Electrical and Computer Engineering degree and a Senior Management postgraduate degree.

Jens Wandel (Acting)

May 2022 - April 2023

Prior to this appointment as UNOPS Acting Executive Director, Mr. Wandel was the UN Secretary-General Designate for the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund and Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General on Reforms.

Mr. Wandel gained extensive experience working with international organizations with a focus on management, adaptive change and sustainable development. He previously served as Director of the UNDP Bureau for Management Services.

A Danish national, Mr. Wandel holds a Master’s degree in political science and government from Aarhus University (Denmark).

Grete Faremo

August 2014 - May 2022

A Norwegian national, Ms. Faremo graduated from the University of Oslo in 1978 with a degree in international law. She began her career in public service in 1979. Throughout the 1990s and early 2010s, she held various cabinet-level positions in the Norwegian government, including as Minister of Justice and Public Security, Minister of Defence, Minister of Oil and Energy, and Minister of Development Cooperation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

She also spent several years working in the private sector, including five years as Microsoft’s Director of Law and Corporate Affairs for Western Europe.

Jan Mattsson

June 2006 - June 2014

Mr. Mattsson joined UNOPS from a long UN career, including as UN Assistant Secretary-General at UNDP. He previously worked as UN Resident Coordinator with UNDP, and he worked in various roles at the UN Industrial Development Organization, UNFPA, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, and the World Food Programme.

Before joining the UN, he held several academic positions – including researcher, lecturer and administrative dean – and worked at the Swedish Academy of Engineering Science.

A Swedish national, Mr. Mattsson holds a PhD in Engineering.

Gilberto Flores (Interim)

November 2005 - June 2006

A Chilean national, Mr. Flores was the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Argentina from 1997 to 2000. During his tenure, the UNDP’s country programme in Argentina was the largest globally. Between 1986 and 1990, Mr. Flores served as Division Chief in charge of portfolios of the UNDP Office for Projects Services (OPS) in institution building and public sector management. Before he joined UNOPS, Mr. Flores worked as Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Regional Director of UNDP's Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Nigel Fisher

August 2003 - October 2005

Mr. Fisher joined the UN in 1977. He held several senior roles with UNICEF, including Regional Director in South Asia, Director of Emergency Operations, and Special Representative for Rwanda and the Great Lakes. He was Deputy Executive Secretary of the World Conference on Education for All as well as Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.

Mr. Fisher also served as Deputy Representative of the Secretary-General in the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti, and as its Special Representative (a.i.). He worked as the Regional UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis.

A Canadian national, he earned a Master of Arts degree in political science from McMaster University (Canada).

Gerald Walzer (Interim) | February 2003 - August 2003

During his 40 years with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Mr. Walzer held various senior positions in the field and at headquarters, including 6 years as Deputy High Commissioner. Mr. Walzer was acting UNOPS Executive Director for six months until the arrival of Nigel Fisher. After his time with UNOPS, Mr. Walzer led a team of investigators commissioned by the UN Secretary-General to analyze the 19 August 2003 attack in Baghdad. An Austrian national, he graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration.

Reinhart Helmke | January 1995 - January 2003

Mr. Helmke began his international development career in Brazil in 1969, where he was project manager for a German bilateral land reform project. He first joined the UN system in 1973, working for the International Labour Organization. He held various positions at the UN – including with the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and the International Atomic Energy Agency. He was also Director of UNDP's Regional Division for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

A German national, Mr. Helmke studied political science, economics, public finance and foreign trade at the Universities of Hamburg and Saarbruecken (Germany) and at the University of Lisbon (Portugal).

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Jorge Moreira da Silva

Jens Wandel (Acting)

Grete Faremo

Jan Mattsson

Gilberto Flores (Interim)

Nigel Fisher

Gerald Walzer (Interim) | February 2003 - August 2003

Reinhart Helmke | January 1995 - January 2003