Arthur Erken has served as Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia at the International Organization for Migration (IOM) since October 2024. He is responsible for providing strategic leadership and policy direction, ensuring effective programme implementation, and supporting regional and international processes and dialogues on migration. Prior to joining IOM, he served as Director of the Policy and Strategy Division at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in New York. There, he oversaw the formulation, implementation and monitoring of the UNFPA’s Strategic Plan and guided the organisation’s inter-agency and intergovernmental engagements. He previously led UNFPA’s Division of Communications and Strategic Partnerships, responsible for corporate resource mobilisation, communications, and strategic partnerships. His earlier UNFPA positions include Acting Regional Director for the Asia and Pacific Regional Office in Bangkok, Representative in Vietnam and Bangladesh, and Deputy Representative in Tanzania. He holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in anthropology from Radboud University. Photo credit: ©IOM