Retired military man Hubert Price to head UNSOS

A former US army colonel Hubert Price has been appointed head of the UN Support Office in Somalia, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has announced.

Price who has variously served in the UN was until his appointment the Acting Assistant Secretary General in the Department of Field Support.

Price takes over from the newly reformed UNSOS which is the predecessor of UN Support Office for Amisom, UNSOA. The UN announced last November it was expanding the mandate and scope of UNSOA owing to concerns that of limited capacity to address the widening logistical challenges.

In effect UNSOS was established with the mandate to provide support to AMISOM, UNSOM and the Somali National Army on joint operations with AMISOM.

Ban said Price brings to the new position more than 20 years of experience in UN peacekeeping operations, most recently as Director of Mission Support in the UN Mission in Liberia, from 2010 until 2015.

A retired Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Armed Forces, Mr. Price has been involved in United Nations peacekeeping operations since 1994, serving in various capacities in Mozambique and Angola, as well as at the United Nations Logistics Base in Brindisi, Italy.

Price will be reporting to the head of UN Assistance Mission for Somalia, UNSOM which is currently held by Michael Keating.