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Coulomb steps down as head of IIR

FRANCE: Didier Coulomb has stepped down as director general of the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR) after 20 years in the role. 

He now officially hands over to Yosr Allouche to manage and develop the organisation. Allouche, the first woman, and the first person born outside of France to assume the role, was voted in at last year’s International Congress of Refrigeration in Paris.

Coulomb joined the IIR in 2004 after two years as secretary general at the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development. In a career spanning 40 years, he previously held roles at the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research, Directorate General for Food Ministry of Agriculture and the High Commission for Planning.

“I am counting on Yosr, on the new team that is being put in place at the IIR’s head office and on all of you to continue and amplify the IIR’s action for the good of humanity, and to make it better known and appreciated around you,” he said on his departure. “A new strategy has just been drawn up and validated by our statutory bodies, based in particular on actions to be carried out, country by country, which will lead to new services and a new organisation.”

Related stories:

Dr Yosr Allouche named IIR director general21 August 2023
FRANCE: Dr Yosr Allouche has become the first woman, and the first person born outside of France, to hold the role of director general of the International Institute of Refrigeration. Read more…

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