Dr Lassina Zerbo is the Executive Secretary of the CTBTO, a position which he assumed in August 2013. Previously, he served as Director of the International Data Centre (IDC) at the CTBTO.
He is a national from Burkina Faso who completed his higher education in France, obtaining a PhD in Geophysics from the Université de Paris XI in 1993. During a professional career spanning nearly 25 years, Zerbo has developed expertise ranging from scientific and technical competencies to results based management and multilateral diplomacy. As the focal point on CTBT issues related to the nuclear tests conducted by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in 2006 and 2009, the triple disaster in Japan in March 2011, and technical assistance for tsunami warning systems, Zerbo serves as the custodian of all technically sensitive information of the organization. He remains responsible for the release of this information to Member States and their institutions in compliance with the Treaty’s requirements and is the Project Executive for the Science and Technology 2013 Conference and Chairman of the scientific committee.