Portugal's Vitorino elected head of UN migration agency
- World
- Anadolu Agency
- Published Date: 12:00 | 29 June 2018
- Modified Date: 07:18 | 29 June 2018
Portugal's Antonio Manuel de Carvalho Ferreira Vitorino on Friday was elected the new head of the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Vitorino, 61, succeeds the U.S.' William Lacy Swing, who is leaving the IOM after serving two five-year terms as director general.
His tenure will begin on Oct. 1. He is a former European commissioner for justice and home affairs (1999-2004).
In the race for the post, Vitorino bested both current IOM Deputy Director-General Laura Thompson and U.S. candidate Ken Isaacs.
Costa Rica's Thompson would have been the woman to head the IOM.
Trump's nominee Isaacs, under fire for his anti-Muslim comments, was eliminated in the early rounds of the election.
His candidacy came amid widely condemned U.S. policies such as Muslim travel bans and children being forcibly separated from their migrant parents.
The IOM has a staff of over 10,000 and over 400 offices in more than 150 countries. It is the leading inter-governmental organization in the field of migration.