Country Representative in Ukraine

Sabine Freizer Gunes has over 25 years policy and programming experience in good governance, gender equality, human rights, civil society development and conflict prevention and resolution. Until February 2023, she was the Chief of UN Women’s Leadership and Governance Section, a post she held since August 2019. As Chief, she supervised a team working to ensure women and girls’ participation in decision making and that they benefit from gender responsive governance.  Sabine previously spent four years in UN Women’s Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia where she served as a Policy Advisor on Governance, Peace, Security, as well as acting head of office in Turkey and Albania.

Prior to this role, Sabine worked as the acting Eurasia Program Director at the Open Society Foundations (2014-2015). Between 2009 and May 2013, she was the Europe Director at the International Crisis Group, where she started as South Caucasus Director (2004-2009). She began her career with the OSCE Missions in Uzbekistan and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

A national of Belgium and USA, Sabine holds a Ph.D. in Social Policy from London School of Economics and Political Sciences, UK, M.A. in European Politics and Administration from the College of Europe, Belgium and B.A. in Political Science from the Dartmouth College, USA. She is married with two children.