Azerbaijani diplomat appointed to UN CERF Advisory Group

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed 12 new members to the Advisory Group of the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), with Azerbaijani diplomat Elmeddin Mehdiyev among those selected, according to local media.

Mehdiyev currently serves as director of the Azerbaijan International Development Agency (AIDA) under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The newly appointed members also include representatives from Canada, Côte d'Ivoire, Denmark, Gambia, Germany, the Netherlands, Niger, Norway, Qatar, South Africa, and Sweden.

The Advisory Group is composed of 23 members drawn from Africa, Asia, Europe, the Gulf States, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, and Oceania. Each member is appointed for a single three-year term.

Established by the UN General Assembly in 2005, the Advisory Group works through the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator to provide the Secretary-General with expert assessments and recommendations on the allocation and effectiveness of CERF funding.

Since its launch in 2006, CERF has distributed more than $9.2 billion in humanitarian assistance to over 110 countries and territories. This has been made possible by contributions from 143 member states and observers, along with regional governments, corporations, foundations, and private donors.

In the first half of 2025 alone, CERF allocated $214 million to support 24 countries, including Afghanistan, where funds were used both to mitigate the impact of an expected drought and to assist with the return of people from Iran. 

During 2025, CERF has also supported innovative projects to strengthen climate resilience across eight countries and allocated an additional $4 million to reduce the humanitarian impact of drought in Guatemala.

By Tamilla Hasanova