Catriona Wendy Campbell Laing is a British

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

and

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

who has been serving as

United Nations Secretary-General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or UNSECGEN) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the United Nations System#Six principal organs, six principal organs of ...

António Guterres António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres (born 30 April 1949) is a Portuguese politician and diplomat who is serving as the ninth and current secretary-general of the United Nations since 2017. A member of the Socialist Party (Portugal), ...

Special Representative Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seating ...

for Somalia and Head of the

United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia The United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) was a special political mission of the United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. Its primary purpose was to assist the Federal Government of Somalia in achieving p ...

(UNSOM) since 2023.

Early life and education

Laing studied economics at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

, graduating with a

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

(MSc) degree in 1986. She later attended the

Cranfield School of Management Cranfield School of Management, established in 1967, is a business school that is part of Cranfield University in Bedfordshire, United Kingdom. Cranfield School of Management is triple accredited by the Association of MBAs (AMBA), EQUIS and AAC ...

Cranfield University Cranfield University is a postgraduate-only public research university in the United Kingdom that specialises in science, engineering, design, technology and management. Cranfield was founded as the College of Aeronautics (CoA) in 1946. Throug ...

, and completed a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

(MBA) in 1996.

Career

After graduating, Laing worked as an ODI Fellow for the

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

Ministry of Works. She then joined the

Overseas Development Administration The Department for International Development (DFID) was a ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom, from 1997 to 2020. It was responsible for administering foreign aid internationally. The DFID was founded by the UK gov ...

, which was then an agency of the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is the ministry of foreign affairs and a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom. The office was created on 2 ...

(FCO). She was seconded to be head of the development office of the UN Mission in Somalia 1993–94. She studied at

1995–96 for an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...

degree. She continued with the Overseas Development Administration when it became part of the

Department for International Development The Department for International Development (DFID) was a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom, from 1997 to 2020. It was responsible for administering foreign aid ...

(DFID) in 1997. She was seconded to the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for supporting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister and Cabinet ...

as deputy director of the Prime Minister's strategy unit 2001–05, then was head of DFID's International Division Advisory Department 2005–06, head of DFID in Sudan 2006–09, and director, human rights and international, at the

Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

2009–12. She then joined the FCO and was the UK's senior civilian representative to the NATO operation in southern Afghanistan 2012–13. Laing was appointed to be Ambassador to Zimbabwe from 2014. After four years in that post she was appointed to be

High Commissioner to Nigeria Countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Nations typically exchange high commissioners, rather than ambassadors. Though there are a few technical differences, they are in practice one and the same office. The following persons have served as B ...

from November 2018. Laing was appointed CB in the

2012 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2012 were announced on 31 December 2011 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand,Living people Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of Cranfield University Civil servants in the Ministry of Overseas Development Companions of the Order of the Bath British women ambassadors Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Zimbabwe High commissioners of the United Kingdom to Nigeria Year of birth missing (living people)