Malcolm Cutajar has been appointed as the new Assistant Refugee Commissioner by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, following consultation with Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Abela.
A government statement read that prior to his appointment, mr Cutajar occupied the post of Asylum Determination Officer, and in 2012 was also appointed as a case officer in the Refugee Commissioner's office.
At present, he is a national expert nominated on one of the dossiers being discussed at EU level, and also is Vice-President of the Asylum Working Group regarding proposals made by the European Commission.
He graduated from the University of Malta back in 2008 and has a BA in International Relations. He also achieved a Masters in this subject in 2012. The government statement described him as an expert on the Middle East, Africa and Afghanistan.
The Refugee Commissioner's Office is responsible for receiving, processing and determining asylum and protection applications.