UNDP’s global leadership team is more determined than ever. With feet on the ground and eyes on the future, they are guiding 23,000 colleagues in over 170 countries and territories.
In 2024, we invested in upgrading the executive skills of over 500 UNDP leaders. Data show that offices whose leaders participated in our award-winning Leaders for 2030 Programme were twice as likely to be top performers. Since 2021, 50% of UNDP Resident Representatives have been women.
Achim Steiner
Administrator
Haoliang Xu
Associate Administrator
Ahunna Eziakonwa
Regional Bureau for Africa
Abdallah Al Dardari
Regional Bureau for Arab States
Kanni Wignaraja
Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific
Ivana Živković
Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States
Michelle Muschett
Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean
Shoko Noda
Crisis Bureau
Susan Brown
Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy*
Linda Maguire
Bureau for Management Services*
Marcos Athias Neto
Bureau for Policy and Programme Support
Ulrika Modéer– Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy until August 2024
Angelique M. Crumbly– Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the Bureau for Management Services until October 2024
In 2024, 14,631 UN Volunteers aged 18 to 79 served across 59 UN entities in 169 countries. Representing 181 nationalities, they brought diverse perspectives and deep local knowledge to UN initiatives in peace and security, development and human rights. Some 4,161 volunteers helped UNDP enhance its development support in 130 countries. UNDP country offices with over 100 UN Volunteers included Bangladesh, Colombia and Ukraine.
Sona Kante is a resilience activities monitoring officer serving with WFP in Guinea, controlling the 25 fish farming basins that were set up as part of an integrated UNV project. Photo: UN Volunteers
Romain Assaad, Communications and Digital Media Specialist with the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office in Lebanon. Photo: UN Volunteers
UNDP’s capacity to create, finance and deliver value depends entirely on its people. Marking its fifth anniversary in 2024, UNDP’s People for 2030 Strategy has established us as a leader in people management innovation within the UN system. It fosters a high-performance culture and positive employee experience to enable UNDP to deliver more and better development results by having the right people in the right place at the right time.
Notable achievements included:
#UNDPListens continued to guide improvements in people management and organizational performance. In 2024, the overall employee engagement score rose by 2 points to 74%, while the indicator for trust, psychological safety and belonging in the workplace reached 75%. Offices with higher people management scores demonstrated better programme delivery.
Sanjana Sanghi (UNDP India Youth Champion), Yurii Romashko (CEO of the Institute of Analysis and Advocacy and Generation 17 Young Leader), and Daniella Esi Darlington (Co-Founder of Copianto AI and Board Member of the ITU Secretary-General’s Youth Advisory Board) speaking at SDG Digital during the Summit of the Future Action Days. Photo: © D. Prospero / ITU
In 2024, UNDP’s Goodwill Ambassadors and celebrity supporters injected star power into our advocacy campaigns. Nikolaj Coster-Waldau launched the Weather Kids climate campaign on major global and national news networks, while Uzo Aduba highlighted the #GenderEqualEconomies campaign in her CNN opinion piece.
Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh championed gender equality and the SDGs when accepting prestigious awards like the Atlantic Council Distinguished Leadership Award and the World Economic Forum Crystal Award.
His Royal Highness Crown Prince Haakon of Norway continued supporting the SDGs as Goodwill Ambassador, visiting Jamaica to highlight innovative efforts to address climate change, protect marine ecosystems and reduce poverty.
Young people took centre stage at the Summit of the Future Action Days. UNDP India Youth Champion Sanjana Sanghi urged youth to be the architects of their future, while fellow UNDP India Youth Climate Champion Prajakta Koli leveraged her creative platforms and influence to inspire youth action during Climate Week.
Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden embarked on her journey as Goodwill Ambassador by visiting UNDP’s climate and gender equality initiatives in Bangladesh. Photo: Martuza Jacky / UNDP Bangladesh
