Sinikinesh Beyene Jimma

Sinikinesh Beyene Jimma is the Chief of the Marine and Coastal ecosystems in the Ecosystems Division of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). She provides strategic leadership and policy advice on the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of coastal and marine ecosystems, advancing sustainable blue economy, building climate resilience, ocean governance and integrated management of transboundary water resources. Sinikinesh has worked in different leadership and senior positions for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for more than a decade. Prior to joining the United Nations, she worked for the government, NGOs, and bilateral organisations.

Sinikinesh engaged in various voluntary development initiatives and served on Executive Boards, including as a founding member and Chair of the Executive Board of Horn Center for Democracy and a member of the Steering Group for the Marine Regions Forum, Executive Board of the Global Fund for Coral Reef (GFCR), Executive Board of the African Centre for Disaster Risk Management and the Landmine Survivors Network. She is passionate about contributing to the equitable and sustainable use of resources for the achievement of sustainable development goals (SDGs) across the world.

Sinikinesh holds an MBA from the Australian Institute of Business (AIB), a Masters in Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation for Natural Resources Management from ITC, The Netherlands and a BA degree in Geography and Environmental Studies from Addis Ababa University.