Assistant Secretary-General of the UN Ms. Cihan Sultanoğlu UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (RBEC) Cihan previously served as the Director of Human Resources in UNDP s Bureau of Management. Prior to this, she served as: - Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Regional Director, RBEC (2007-2010) - UN Resident Co-ordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Belarus (2004-2007) - UN Resident Co-ordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Lithuania (2000-2005) - Deputy Resident Representative in Morocco (1995-2000) - Deputy to the Director of the Office of the Administrator (1993-1995) - Recruitment Officer and later Staffing Specialist for Junior Professional Officers (JPO), Division of Personnel (1988-1993) - Recruitment Officer, Division of Personnel, (1986-1988) - Administrative Officer, UNDP Malawi (1982-1985) - Administrative Trainee, New York and Bangkok, Thailand, UNDP (1981-1982) - Research Assistant and Programme Director, Center for Sex Roles and Social Change, School of International Affairs, Columbia University, New York (1980-1981) Ms. Sultanoğlu holds a Master s Degree in International Affairs from the School of International Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University as well as a BA in Economics from Barnard College at Columbia University, New York.
Jan Harfst Chief, Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS, UNDP New York Jan Harfst (The Netherlands) was appointed in March 2011 as Chief of the Division for Central Asian countries and Azerbaijan in UNDP s Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in New York. Mr. Harfst began his UN career as a Junior Professional Officer with UNDP Dominican Republic in 1989. Subsequently, he was assigned to Mozambique as field implementation officer for the UN Capital Development Fund, after which he held different programmatic positions in the UN Office for Humanitarian Assistance Coordination in Angola. In 1997, Mr. Harfst returned to UNDP in Tajikistan, where he was responsible for Tajikistan s largest areabased post-conflict recovery programme, following the country s peace agreement. In April 2002, he joined UNDP Ukraine as coordinator of another large-scale area-based initiative aimed at reducing tensions between Crimean Tatar, ethnic Russian and other communities in the peninsula. Additionally, Mr. Harfst also provided technical support to the Chernobyl recovery and development programme. From 2005, Mr. Harfst worked as a consultant for UNDP in Afghanistan, Belarus, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. He developed a practitioner s guide on area-based development for use in the region and beyond. In mid-2008, Mr. Harfst joined UNDP s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery as senior programme adviser on early recovery, providing expert advice to post-conflict or disaster countries such as Georgia, Kyrgyzstan and Pakistan. Mr. Harfst holds a Master s Degree in Human Geography from the University of Utrecht, The Netherlands.
UKRAINE Neal Walker Humanitarian Coordinator UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Mr. Neal Walker arrived in Kyiv on October 4, 2014 and immediately assumed his duties as the newly appointed UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Ukraine. On 21 January 2015 Neal Walker was designated a Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine. The United Nations System in Ukraine consists of 16 funds, programmes, and specialized agencies: the IAEA, IFC, ILO, IMF, IOM, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNOCHA, UNODC, UNV, UN Women, WFP, WHO, and the World Bank. Each works according to a specific mandate while ensuring a coherent and strategic focus that includes technical assistance for human development and humanitarian support to those in need, built on a foundation of respect and promotion of human rights. Mr. Walker reiterated United Nations commitment to support the Government and the people of Ukraine in the critical and challenging times facing the country. In addition to his role as the UN Resident Coordinator, Mr. Walker is the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative, guiding UNDP work in Ukraine. The main goal of UNDP is to support Ukraine on its sustainable development path towards a more prosperous, democratic, inclusive and resilient state where no one is left behind and each voice is heard. "The United Nations in Ukraine is an impartial organisation that brings knowledge as well as operational and technical experience to help the Ukrainian Government respond both to the difficult situation in the East as well as to the ongoing reform processes in Ukraine. All UN agencies in Ukraine are united by a collective vision and approach: to help Government better meet the needs of all citizens, today and into the future. - said Mr. Walker while presenting his credential in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr. Walker brings 24 years of senior-level experience working with the United Nations. Prior to his new post in Ukraine he served as the UN Resident Coordinator and Resident Representative in Bangladesh (2011 2014) and in the Kyrgyz Republic (2006 2011). Mr. Walker has held other positions in both UNDP and in the Organization of American States. Mr. Walker has a degree in political science and a master s degree in public and international affairs from the University of Pittsburgh.
BELARUS Sanaka Samarasinha UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Mr. Samarasinha is a citizen of Sri Lanka. Before this appointment, he served in various offices of UNDP, and in particular, as Director a.i., Global Centre for Public Service Excellence, Singapore; Senior Advisor to the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Iran; Officer in Charge, Maldives; Director a.i., Kosovo and Officer in Charge of UNDP Samoa, Niue, Tokelau and the Cook Islands. In 2006-2010, Mr. Samarasinha was Deputy Resident Representative in Myanmar and from 2005-2006 was assigned to Sri Lanka as Deputy Country Director/Recovery Manager for the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery. He also served in the Bangkok Regional Center as Rule of Law Advisor (2001 to 2005). His first assignment with UNDP was in Sri Lanka as Programme Officer (1999-2001). Before joining the Organization, Mr. Samarasinha worked in the legal profession and in journalism, with government, civil society and the private sector.
MOLDOVA Dafina Gercheva UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Ms. Dafina Gercheva (Bulgaria) was appointed as UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative for the Republic of Moldova on 23 rd February, 2015. As UN Resident Coordinator and designated representative of the UN Secretary-General, Ms. Dafina Gercheva is the leader of the United Nations Country Team playing a central role in coordinating the UN operational activities for development. As UNDP Resident Representative, Ms. Gercheva is the UNDP Administrator's representative at the country level, and head of the country office being ultimately responsible for the quality and sustainability of UNDP interventions, including UNDP policies and procedures. Prior to this appointment, Dafina was Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Director of the Bureau of Management, UNDP (2012-2015). Ms. Gercheva served as UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative to the Republic of Armenia during the period 2010-2012. From 2002 until 2009 she worked in UNDP Regional Support Center in Bratislava, Slovakia as Senior Policy Adviser on Democratic Governance, Local Development and Decentralization and Capacity Development. Dafina joined UNDP Bulgaria initially as Sustainable Development Policy Specialist in 1994 and few years later became the Head of UNDP program. During her assignment in Bulgaria she was also a lead trainer at the Environment Management Training Workshops in Bulgaria, Kazakhstan and Moldova. Dafina holds a B.Sc. in Economics, M.Sc. in Political Economy and Sociology and a Ph.D. in Environmental Economics from the University of National and World Economy, Bulgaria. She also holds Diplomas in Executive Education, University of Pennsylvania- The Wharton School and in Environmental Economics for Development Policy, World Bank Institute, Washington, DC. Dafina was Visiting Fulbright Scholar, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA, University College London, and Oxford Colleges. Ms. Gercheva is married with two children. She speaks Russian and English.
GEORGIA Niels Scott UN Resident Coordinator / UNDP Resident Representative Prior to his assignment in Georgia, Mr. Scott has served as Chief of the Humanitarian Coordination Support Section for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), based in Geneva. He also served as interim Head of OCHA s Office in Côte d'ivoire, Chief of Disaster and Vulnerability Policy Section, based in Geneva and as interim Head of Office in Haiti (February 2010 June 2010). Niels was Operations Coordinator for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) from 2006-2008, based in Geneva. Mr. Scott has also served with the UN Mission in Sudan as Head of their Regional Office for Darfur, as well as serving with OCHA as Head of Office, North Darfur. Niels worked with the IFRC over a period of 12 years as: Representative for Haiti/Head of Delegation (2004); Head of Regional Delegation for West and Central Africa (2000-2003); Head of Delegation Georgia (1997-2000); Deputy Head of Regional Delegation for Central Asia (1995-1997); Programme Coordinator in Vukovar, Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia (with the International Committee of the Red Cross) (1995); Relief Coordinator FYROM (1994-1995); and Logistics Officer Croatia (1993-1994). Mr. Scott also held several positions in the non-governmental and private sectors.
AZERBAIJAN H.E. Antonius Broek UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Mr. Antonius Broek has been appointed as the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative for the Republic of Azerbaijan in October 2012. Mr. Broek joined the United Nations in 1984 and worked for different UN agencies in a number of countries. From 1984 to 1986, he was an Associate Expert for FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) in Pakistan; then from 1986 to 1992, he held a number of different posts in UNDP/OPS (now United Nations Office of Project Services) based in New York, USA. Since 1984 Mr. Broek is with UNDP. During 1992-1996 he was a UNDP Assistant Resident Representative in China. From 1996 to 2000 he served as Deputy Chief of the Country Office Support Division of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific (RBAP) in New York. From 2001 to 2004 while serving as UNDP Senior Deputy Resident Representative in Ethiopia, he played a key role in building a Government-Donor partnership with the private sector spearheading the launch of the Global Compact initiative in Ethiopia and creation of the national Eco-tourism Association. Before coming to Belarus, Mr. Broek was the UNDP Country Director in Burundi (2004-2008). He managed the UNDP office and played an important role in UN coordination and UN integrated activities in the post conflict setting. He was instrumental in mobilizing donor resources for peace building and recovery activities in this war torn country. Prior to his appointment in Azerbaijan, Mr. Broek served as UN Resident Coordinator/UNDP Resident Representative in Belarus from 2008 to 2012. Mr. Broek is a citizen of the Netherlands. Mr. Broek graduated from the Wageningen Agricultural University (the Netherlands) with a Master of Science degree. He speaks Dutch, English, French and German. He is married and has two children. The Resident Coordinator leads the United Nations System in Azerbaijan and is also the Resident Representative for UNDP in Azerbaijan. He is assisted by UNDP Deputy Resident Representative, Operations Manager and Assistant Resident Representative for Programme.