Bulgaria’s Maria Gabriel appointed assistant director-general of Unesco
Maria Gabriel, a Bulgarian national who was formerly her country’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, has been appointed Unesco’s assistant director-general for communication and information, Unesco said on its website on January 30.
As European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth (2019–2023), Gabriel led the “1 million talents in deep Tech” initiative and well as the Digital Education action Plan, Unesco said.
As European Commissioner in charge of the Digital Economy and Society (2017-2019), she notably spearheaded the European Artificial Intelligence Strategy and the Digital Europe Program. A former Member of the European Parliament (2009-2017), she notably served as a member of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs.
She has held both teaching and research positions at the Bordeaux Institute of Political Studies.
Unesco said that the new members of its senior management team will assume office at the beginning of March 2026.
“They will support the Director-General in enhancing efficiency, strengthening the implementation of Unesco’s mandate, and fostering innovative partnerships, within the framework of Unesco80, with the aim of enabling Unesco to better serve peoples and communities and to contribute to the consolidation and maintenance of peace,” Unesco said.
Gabriel was deputy prime minister and foreign minister in the Nikolai Denkov government, in an agreement between Boiko Borissov’s GERB-UDF and We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria, which was stated as intending to see Gabriel succeed Denkov as Prime Minister after Denkov held the office for nine months. However, that deal fell through.
She was nominated for the Unesco post by the current outgoing government of GERB-UDF’s Rossen Zhelyazkov.
