Governance

A Board of Commissioners oversees the work of ICMP. The Director-General manages and directs the organization, supported by directors who manage the horizontal programs. The ICMP Agreement established a Conference of States Parties which convenes at least every three years and a Financial Committee, which meets annually.

To date, ten countries –– Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Chile, Cyprus, Serbia, Afghanistan, Germany and Kosovo – are States Parties to the ICMP Agreement, and Belgium and El Salvador are Signatory States.

ICMP Board of Commissioners

ICMP is governed by a Board of Commissioners, chaired by former Norwegian Foreign Minister, Ambassador Knut Vollebæk, and comprising distinguished individuals who are active in the fields of diplomacy and human rights. The experience of ICMP’s Board of Commissioners ensures that the organization benefits from the highest standard of strategic direction and oversight.

  • 1997 – 2001: Bob Dole, Honorable U.S. Senator
  • 1996 – 1997: Cyrus Vance, former U.S. Secretary of State
  • 2001 – 2011: James V. Kimsey, founding CEO and Chairman Emeritus of America Online
  • 2011 – 2023: Ambassador (Ret) Thomas Miller
  • Susanna Agnelli (1998 – 2000), former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Italy
  • Jose Ayala-Lasso (1996 – 1997), former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and Foreign Minister, Ecuador
  • Robert Badinter (1996 – 1997), Senator for the Hauts-de-Seine département, and former Minister of Justice, France
  • Lord Carrington (1996 – 1997), member of the House of Lords and former Foreign Secretary, United Kingdom
  • Uffe Ellemann-Jensen (2000 – 2003), Chairman of the Baltic Development Forum and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Denmark
  • Cornelio Sommaruga (1996 – 2000), President of the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining and former President of the ICRC
  • Max van der Stoel (1996 – 2001), former OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities and Minister of Foreign Affairs, The Netherlands
  • Sahabzada Yaqub Khan (1996 – 2004), Commissioner of the Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly Conflict and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Pakistan
  • Michael Portillo (1998 – 2012), Former Secretary of State for Defence, United Kingdom
  • Carolina Barco (2009 – 2014), former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Colombia
  • Surin Pitsuwan (2016-2017), former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Thailand, and former chair of the ASEAN Regional Forum
  • Wim Kok (2002-2018), Former Prime Minister, The Netherlands
  • María Eugenia Brizuela de Ávila (2019-2025), Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of El Salvador

Current Commissioners include:

Picture of Ambassador Knut Vollebæk,<br>Former Norwegian Foreign Minister, Chairperson
Ambassador Knut Vollebæk,
Former Norwegian Foreign Minister, Chairperson

Mr. Knut Vollebæk was born 11 February 1946 in Oslo and is a distinguished Norwegian diplomat and politician. Mr. Vollebæk served as the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities from 2007 to 2013.

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Picture of Her Majesty Queen Noor
Her Majesty Queen Noor

Her Majesty Queen Noor, Jordan

Picture of Dirk Brengelmann
Dirk Brengelmann

Deputy Chair, Board of Commissioners, Chair, Audit Committee

Former German Ambassador
to the Netherlands

Picture of Thomas Miller
Thomas Miller

Former US Ambassador to
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Greece, and US special Cyprus Coordinator

Picture of Rt. Hon. Alistair Burt
Rt. Hon. Alistair Burt

Former UK Minister of State and Member of the UK Parliament

Picture of Sanji Monageng
Sanji Monageng

Former Judge of the
International Criminal Court

Picture of Bert Koenders
Bert Koenders

Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands

Picture of Barbara Haering
Barbara Haering

Former Vice President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Chair of the Geneva International Center for Humanitarian Demining

Picture of Thao Griffiths
Thao Griffiths

Former Country Director of the Vietnam Veterans of
America Foundation, Head of Public

Conference of States Parties

The Conference of States Parties represents States Parties to the ICMP Agreement and includes signatory and other states that participate in an observer capacity. The ICMP Board of Commissioners and the Director-General invite the Conference of States Parties to meet at least once every three years.

The Conference of States Parties considers ICMP’s reports on activities, proposes policy directives for the Board of Commissioners’ program of work, and recommends to States Parties measures to advance ICMP’s objectives.

Afghanistan Signature - Entry into force 29-11-2019 A Accession 30-10-2019
Belgium Signature 15-12-2014
Chile Signature 14-12-2015 Entry into force 17-10-2018 R Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Notification 17-09-2018
Cyprus Signature 14-12-2015 Entry into force 07-07-2018 R Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Notification 07-06-2018
El Salvador Signature 18-11-2015
Germany Entry into force 30-05-2021 A Accession 30-04-2021
Kosovo Entry into force 18-08-2023 A Accession 19-07-2023
Luxembourg Signature 15-12-2014 Entry into force 16-06-2016 R Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Notification 17-05-2016
Netherlands Signature 15-12-2014 Entry into force 17-07-2015 R Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Notification 17-06-2015
Serbia Signature 16-12-2015 Entry into force 20-08-2017 R Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Notification 21-07-2017
Sweden Signature 15-12-2014 Entry into force 14-05-2015 R Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Notification 14-04-2015
United Kingdom Signature 15-12-2014 Entry into force 14-05-2015 R Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Notification 14-04-2015

Financial Committee

The Financial Committee meets annually and is the primary forum in which ICMP’s financial strategy is presented to donors.

The Financial Committee represents States Parties that have supported ICMP financially during the reporting period. The Financial Committee considers ICMP’s report on activities for the past year and the coming year, adopts recommendations relating to ICMP’s financial management, and reviews and approves ICMP’s Financial Regulations and reporting format. 

Global Forum on Missing Persons

The Global Forum provides for a range of engaged parties, including the Board of Commissioners, the Panel of Experts and the Interagency Committee, as well as civil society organizations and representatives of families of the missing. The Global Forum reflects the diversity of missing and disappeared persons issues and the diversity of potential solutions.

As a mechanism for the exchange of ideas and practical proposals based on expertise and experience, the Global Forum is designed to identify common problems faced by countries and families around the world and seek solutions at the international and domestic level. Through policy forums, conferences and publications, the Global Forum endeavors to broaden public discourse on the issue of missing persons, highlighting the needs of survivors and the requirements of society. 

Panel of Experts

The ICMP Panel of Experts comprises distinguished researchers and practitioners in the field of human rights, the rule of law, transitional justice, and forensic science. The Panel of Experts provides regular and ad hoc expert advice to the Director-General on issues pertaining to ICMP’s program of work, relations with current or potential partners, and other issues about which ICMP may wish to receive expert advice.

Picture of Alicia C. Decker
Alicia C. Decker
Picture of Andreas Tillmar
Andreas Tillmar
Picture of Charla Marshall
Charla Marshall
Picture of Edward Herrmann
Edward Herrmann
Picture of Eric Stover
Eric Stover
Picture of Hisham Al-Alawi
Hisham Al-Alawi
Picture of Jodie Ward
Jodie Ward
Picture of Lourdes Prieto
Lourdes Prieto
Picture of LeAndra Nephin
LeAndra Nephin
Picture of Love Dalén
Love Dalén
Picture of Mark Freeman
Mark Freeman
Picture of Melanie Klinkner
Melanie Klinkner
Picture of Nadim Houry
Nadim Houry
Picture of Noor Hamadeh
Noor Hamadeh
Picture of Paula Gaviria Betancur
Paula Gaviria Betancur
Picture of Sara Huston Katsanis
Sara Huston Katsanis
Picture of Stefan Prost
Stefan Prost
Picture of Tâm T. T. Ngô
Tâm T. T. Ngô
Picture of Thomas J. White
Thomas J. White
Picture of John Terzano
John Terzano
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