Biography

Born in 1966 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ambassador Zénon MUKONGO NGAY is of Congolese nationality. He earned his law degree from the University of Lubumbashi Law School and holds a specialization in International Law and the Promotion of Human Rights from Columbia University (Spring Term, 2002). A specialist in multilateral diplomacy, Ambassador Mukongo Ngay has served as a Senior Lecturer at the University of Lubumbashi and practiced law professionally until 1997.

He has authored several publications and possesses extensive experience in multilateral treaty negotiations within the United Nations system. His expertise includes managing the DRC's portfolio at the UN Security Council and overseeing the country's participation in the Assemblies of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

In 1997, Ambassador Mukongo Ngay transitioned to public service, beginning as a research fellow in the office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the DRC. From 1998 to 2015, he served as a diplomat at the DRC's Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York. He was later appointed as the Permanent Representative and Ambassador of the DRC to the United Nations Office in Geneva (2015-2020). More recently, he acted as Principal Rapporteur in the Office of the President, supporting the Head of State during his tenure as Chair of the African Union (2021-2022), and served as Chief of Staff to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Francophonie (2022-2023).

In July 2023, President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo appointed Ambassador Zénon MUKONGO NGAY as the Permanent Representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the United Nations in New York.