Carlos Lopes has stepped down from his position as the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Before now, he had spent four years in the position, a period many have adjudged as successful and impactful for the commission.

Lopes was the 8th Executive Secretary of the UN ECA. He assumed his position in September 2012. The 56 years old Guinea-Bissauan had previously served as the Executive Director of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) in Geneva and Director of the UN System Staff College in Turin at the level of Assistant Secretary-General from March 2007 to August 2012.

Notably, during his time at the ECA, he was the first to call for debt cancellation for Ebola-affected countries on the continent. He said “that would create the right conditions for recovery in their post-crisis phase.” Lopes reportedly fought against the loss of billions of dollars from bad contract negotiations by countries in Africa. At the same time, he was against lazy fiscal reforms or illicit financial flows.

While reflecting on his time at the commission on Thursday, Lopes said “I have enjoyed my time at the ECA, but unfortunately all good things come to an end. I will always cherish the times that we shared together, especially working with the ECA experts in developing strategies to help the continent industrialize; fostering intra-regional integration and trade.”

There are reports that Lopes is eyeing an influential position in the African Union (AU). His track record in the United Nations ECA and his contributions to the continent pitch him as a knowledgeable leader who will be a plus to the AU. Carlos Lopes holds a PhD in history from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and a research master from the Geneva Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies.