Guy Tousignant

Who is Guy Tousignant?

Major-General Guy Tousignant, CMM, CD is a Canadian soldier.

Born in Sherbrooke, Quebec, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Université de Sherbrooke in 1962. He was commissioned with the Canadian Officers' Training Corps in 1962. He was promoted to Major in 1973, Lieutenant-Colonel in 1979, Colonel in 1983, and Brigadier-General in 1990. In 1990, he was appointed base commander of CFB Borden. After being promoted to Major-General in 1993, he was appointed the Commandant of the National Defence College.

He replaced Roméo Dallaire as Force Commander of UNAMIR in August 1994 and also served as assistant Secretary-General of that mission. He departed from Rwanda on December 8, 1995, leaving the mission in the charge of his second-in-command, Brigadier-General Shiva Kumar of India. UNAMIR was finally closed in March 1996.

Tousignant is currently the Secretary General of CARE International Secretariat. The Secretariat, located in Brussels, Belgium, is the central hub of the CARE family, coordinating the efforts of 12 member nations around the world.

In 1983, he was made an Officer of the Order of Military Merit.