George Deikun has over 40 years of experience in international development and humanitarian assistance across Asia, Africa, Europe, and Central Asia. He has held senior leadership positions with USAID, UN-Habitat, and as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Most recently, he served as a Senior Strategic Advisor to USAID/RDMA in Bangkok, Thailand.

1. GEORGE DEIKUN
USAID Regional Development Mission to Asia (RDMA)
American Embassy-Thailand
USAID Box 47
APO AP 96546 USA
Tel: 662-257-3000
Email: gdeikun@hotmail.com or gdeikun@usaid.gov
___________________________________________________________________________
Summary of Employment History
 Senior Strategic Advisor, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Regional
Development Mission to Asia, Bangkok, Thailand
 Mission Director, USAID Mission to the Central Asian Republics, Almaty, Kazakhstan,
November 2015 to June, 2016 (retiree reappointment)
 Director, United Nations-Habitat Office, Geneva, Switzerland, January 2009 to July 2015
(retired from UN in July, 2015)
 Mission Director (Career Minister), USAID Mission to India, New Delhi, February 2005
to January 2009, (retired from USAID in January, 2009)
 Mission Director, Regional USAID Mission to the Central Asian Republics, Almaty,
Kazakhstan, 2002 - 2005
 Deputy Mission Director, USAID, Moscow, Russia, 2000 – 2002
 Deputy Mission Director, USAID, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 1997 – 2000
 Director, Environmental Office, USAID, Cairo, Egypt, 1996-1997
 Director, General Development Office (Housing, Land Markets, Municipal and
Agricultural Development), USAID, Moscow, Russia, 1992 –1996
 Deputy Director, Regional Housing and Urban Development Office for South America,
USAID, Quito, Ecuador, 1991 – 1992
 Director (Acting), Regional Housing and Urban Development Office for the Caribbean,
USAID, Kingston, Jamaica, 1987 - 1990
 Supervisory Regional Housing and Urban Development Officer, Regional Housing and
Urban Development Office for West and Central Africa, USAID, Abidjan, Cote-d’Ivoire,
1982- 1986
 Supervisory Housing and Urban Development Officer, Technical Back-Stop Officer for
North Africa, Middle East and West Africa, USAID, Washington, DC, 1981- 1982
 Senior Program Manager, Tunisia Integrated Regional Development Program,
University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1979 – 1980
 Urban and Regional Planning Specialist (Peace Corps Volunteer), UNDP/World Bank -
`Projet Cissin’ Slum Upgrading and Community Development Project, Ouagadougou,
Burkina Faso, 1976 – 1978
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2. Higher Education
Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government Cambridge, MA, 1991
Master of Public Administration
University of Wisconsin-Madison, The Graduate School Madison, WI, 1980
Ph.D. Course Work in Geography
Rutgers University, The Graduate School New Brunswick, NJ, 1976
Master of City and Regional Planning
Rutgers College New Brunswick, NJ, 1974
Bachelor of Arts in biological sciences
Professional Experience
I bring forty years of high-impact, innovative and team-oriented international development
leadership, management and coordination experience with civil society, private sector, inter-
governmental (UN) and national and local governments for development and humanitarian
outcomes in vital sectors and global challenges including: governance; food security; climate
change; trade promotion, economic growth and job creation; global health; urbanization and
energy security. I have accomplished experience in development assistance policy-making and
implementation; extensive experience in planning, implementation and evaluation of work
programs and budgets; building public-private partnerships including civil society and university
partnerships and capacity building programs, and multi-lateral development bank program
coordination and negotiation with United States Government, United Nations agencies, JBIC,
IMF, World Bank, IFC, Asian and Islamic Development Banks, EU/DEVCO, EBRD and
numerous bilateral donor agencies, regional development banks and agencies: international and
significant national NGOs and private foundations. I am strongly committed to outcome and
results-based programs with accountability for performance and impacts especially to
beneficiary/affected populations. Overseas experience in the former Soviet Union, western
Europe and transitional developing countries of Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, North
Africa and the Middle East and West and Central Africa. I have retired from both the United
Nations and USAID at senior levels. I retired as UN-Habitat’s Geneva Office Director with
strong engagement on policy, inter-governmental and inter-agency coordination on MDG
performance, urbanization, SDG goal formulation and international humanitarian assistance,
including cooperation with ASEAN, Organization for Islamic Cooperation and EU system.
Sept, 2016—Feb, 2017 Senior Strategic Advisor, U.S. Agency for International
Development (USAID), Regional Development Mission for
Asia (RDMA), Bangkok, Thailand
Serve as a strategic advisor to the Regional Mission Director on engagement with regional
institutions, new programmatic directions and mentoring of staff.
Noteworthy Tasks Include:
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3. • Develop a new strategy for engagement of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) in collaboration with the U.S. Mission to ASEAN in Jakarta;
• Identify a more suitable USAID structure to manage programs in collaboration with
ASEAN and bilateral USAID Missions in Southeast Asia; and
• Augment the capacity of the USAID Regional Director’s Office to provide mentoring and
guidance on program design and management for RDMA staff.
Nov, 2015 – Sept, 2016 Mission Director, U.S. Agency for International Development,
Mission to the Central Asian Republics, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Served as the Director of USAID’s Mission to Central Asia, a strategic region for the USA
surrounded by Russia, China, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. The countries of Central Asia diverge
greatly, ranging from Kazakhstan as a middle income country to Tajikistan with 32% of the
population living in poverty. U.S. foreign policy objectives in Central Asia promote stability,
security, and prosperity, but development challenges in the region remain significant including
economic stagnation, international security threats and violent extremism among Central Asia’s
migrants. Additionally, Central Asia region has lack of independent judiciary, endemic corruption,
HIV/AIDS and drug resistant strains of tuberculosis. The USAID Central Asia Mission supports
programs in trade facilitation, finance and market access to enhance regional connectivity; global
climate change including mitigation and adaptation interventions in national adaptation planning,
renewable energies, carbon trading, greenhouse gas reductions; transboundary, international
electricity infrastructure development; transboundary and local water resources management;
transparency and accountability in economic relations and governance; youth employment
generation to counter violent extremism; global health including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and
maternal and child health care; women’s empowerment; basic and higher education; countering
human trafficking and workforce development. The Mission also supports four presidential
initiatives -- Feed the Future, Global Health, PEPFAR, and Global Climate Change. As "One
Mission, Multiple Locations", USAID/Central Asia has five offices in four countries and provides
support services to USAID/Kyrgyzstan. USAID Strategy and program designed and implemented in
close collaboration with four US Ambassadors and Country Teams. Funding obligations in FY 2015
exceeded $75 million, with life-of-project funding of $500 million and staff of 150 including 34
U.S. Direct Hires (USDH), 7 U.S. Personal Service Contractors (USPSC), and 109 Foreign Service
Nationals (FSN).
Personal Accomplishments Include:
• Provided strategic guidance and leadership to promote regional connectivity among the five
Central Asian countries, Afghanistan and South Asia under the Central Asian Regional
Economic Cooperation Organization, USG’s New Silk Road Initiative and Almaty
Consensus. Provided substantive contributions in strengthening intra-regional cooperation in
economic development through enhanced trade and formal and informal employment
generation by customs harmonization, improved transport and logistics for increased market,
finance access, economic diversification, and workforce development; energy security and
energy trade through international electricity infrastructure expansion: climate change
mitigation through renewable energy development, carbon trading and energy efficient
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4. infrastructure and national adaptation planning: and countering HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis
as regional economic and global health security risks;
• Provided strategic vision to the Feed the Future presidential initiative region-wide through
economic diversification and higher agricultural and rural economic productivity and
employment generation by providing programmatic guidance to expand into untapped
potentials in horticulture and livestock development; agricultural value chain development;
expanded regional markets; promote land privatization and real estate market development
and job generation targeted to youth vulnerable to violent extremism;
• Engaged ministers in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to achieve greater regional integration
through expanded agricultural and energy trade;
• Oversaw USAID technical assistance for electricity distribution and natural gas pipeline
infrastructure development to expand intra-regional Central Asian market integration and
integration with Afghanistan and South Asia;
• Contributed to repositioning USAID’s programs in human trafficking and countering violent
extremism through identifying linkages between migration and violent extremism and
trafficking and countering extremism through reintegration of migrants into communities and
creation of jobs, particularly in untapped rural economies;
• Expanded USG’s regional climate change agenda to include national adaptation planning to
access the UN Green Climate Fund resources for renewable energy development and carbon
trading; and
• Identified critical issues for a Mission Management Assessment to rationalize the complex
institutional structure and improve the efficiencies of the USAID/CAR Regional Mission
• Established a comprehensive in-house capacity building program to upgrade skills of local
staff to improve their productivity and performance and ability to take on additional
responsibilities with accountability.
Jan, 2009 – July, 2015 Director, United Nations-Habitat Geneva Liaison and
Humanitarian Affairs Office, Switzerland
Served as UN-Habitat’s representative and senior advocate to the UN system, international
NGOs and member states in Geneva on sustainable urbanization in the resolution of global
challenges of regional economic development and integration, poverty reduction, climate
change, global health, good governance, energy security, conflict mitigation and resolution,
international humanitarian assistance and food security. Provided strategic advice to UN-
Habitat’s Executive Director on agency policy and programs in developing, developed, fragile
and post-conflict states.
Personal Accomplishments include:
• As UN-Habitat’s representative to the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Working Group
forged policy consensus, developed and obtained endorsement among the 20 largest UN
agencies and over 3000 international and national NGOs for the IASC’s first-ever Strategy
for Meeting Humanitarian Challenges in Urban Areas. The Strategy seeks to enhance the
effectiveness, leadership and impact of international humanitarian assistance to refugees
and displaced people in urban conflict and natural disaster situations; to build disaster
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5. mitigation and resiliency to alleviate impacts of emergencies; and to promote cooperation
with regional organizations such as ASEAN, African Union, Gulf Cooperation Council,
Organization of American States and Organization for Islamic Cooperation for coordinated
humanitarian responses, disaster mitigation and risk reduction and resiliency.
• Provided guidance to the Executive Director in the formulation of a New Urban Agenda
and Strategy for UN-Habitat to advocate at international and national policy levels to
recognize and promote the critical role of cities and urbanization in regional and national
economic development, climate change and health.
• Served as the Geneva focal point for UN-Habitat on the Post-2015 and Sustainable
Development Goal working groups and provided the analytical and theoretical justifications
for Goal 11 of 17 SDGs ‘To make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable’;
• Served as the Chair for the UN Inter-agency Consultative Group of 40 UN agencies on the
preparation of the Third International Sustainable Urbanization and Human Settlements
Conference (Habitat III) to review the state of worldwide urbanization in the past 20 years
and to develop a policy-based agenda for the cities and urbanization for the next twenty
years to 2036;
• Provided critical, substantive, policy-level to shape the first UN Urban Refugee Policy;
managed the mobilization of UN Inter-agency Haiti Post-Jan 2010 Earthquake First
Response; and guided UN-Habitat’s resource mobilization strategy development and
advocacy with international donors;
• Served as UN Habitat’s senior representative to the UNFCC’s Conference of the Parties
(COP), Economic and Social Council, Third World Climate Change Conference and UN
International Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR);
• Served as UN-Habitat’s principal liaison with European donors.
Feb, 2005 – Jan, 2009 Mission Director (Career Minister), Mission to India, USAID,
New Delhi, India
Served as the principal spokesperson on development issues and senior country team officer at U.S.
Embassy-New Delhi, including frequent periods as U.S. Chargé d’Affaires. Led policy development
and dialogue to strengthen the U.S.-India bilateral relationship, as one of the most important strategic
partnerships for both countries. Provided vision, program direction and management oversight to
ensure USAID’s strategy and program maximized the sharing of best development practices to
catalyze institutional, policy and regulatory reforms in the world’s second most populous country of
1.1 billion and largest democracy. Led and effectively managed through performance-based work
planning and budgets a full service mission of 17 U.S. official, 15 U.S. contract employees, 100
Foreign Service Nationals and 50 contractor/grantee teams and an annual budget of $100 million and
life-of-project portfolio of $500 million.
Noteworthy accomplishments include:
• Served as Chairperson and guided the strategy and program development for the
Advisory Board of USAID’s South Asia Regional Energy Initiative for Energy whose
objective is to strengthen an eight-country, South Asian regional energy market;
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6. • Oversaw the provision of technical assistance and capacity building among member
states of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for regional
energy market development and trade;
• Led a multi-disciplinary and inter-agency team in India to develop a new, results-focused
five-year strategy for USAID-India development cooperation which included leveraging
up to ten times Indian private and public resources;
• Piloted and promoted the mainstreaming of India’s first performance and outcome-based
system of budget support for reproductive and maternal and child healthcare among 300
million disadvantaged populations in three of India’s poorest states;
• Led unprecedented donor collaborative effort to promote Millenium Development Goal
of water for the poor and Government of India’s significant urban development reforms
through a jointly funded $250 million water/sanitation infrastructure development
program with the Japanese International Cooperation Bank (JBIC) and the World Bank;
• Oversaw support to Indian women’s advocacy NGO network which resulted in the first
rights-based Anti-Domestic Violence Law in India and public deliberation of a rights-
based regulation to increase representation of women in the Indian National Parliament to
increase the voice of women on public issues;
• Oversaw the joint UNICEF, WHO and USAID/India program to eradicate polio in India
including creative approaches to health education among disadvantaged Muslim
populations;
• Led high impact US-Indian response to India's 2.5 million HIV/AIDS cases and third
highest affected population worldwide. Served as USAID’s representation to the Global
Fund’s Country Coordinating Mechanism for $1 billion in HIV and TB grants.
• Formulated and negotiated a major bilateral program to build capacity in Indian
government and civil society for disaster management and preparedness at national,
regional and local government levels and among academic institutions;
• Oversaw USAID technical assistance to the Government of India’s nationwide E-
Governance system to improve transparency and accountability of local governance
bodies;
• Designed and implemented fast-track $500 million emergency program to rehabilitate
post-tsunami Indian communities through an NGO-led initiative;
• Oversaw pilot program for overhaul of New Delhi’s outmoded land registration and
taxation system, including legislation development, as a component of city’s investiment
strategy;
• Oversaw development of India’s first, non-State guaranteed revenue bonds for
water/sanitation infrastructure development to fund public-private partnerships;
• Led the high level India-US Bilateral Energy Dialogue and advance mutually beneficial
policies for India’s power generation modernization, rural electrification expansion and
commercialization of renewal energy sources for rural economic development, including
the creation of a highly successful $200 million Indian venture capital fund for renewable
energy.
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7. June, 2002 – Feb, 2005 Mission Director, Regional Mission for the Central Asian
Republics, USAID/CAR, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Served as the United States Government’s spokesperson for development assistance to and
manage USAID operations in the five countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Uzbekistan,
Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Led USG assistance to support Central Asia’s evolution to a more
democratic, market-based economy under challenging circumstances. Responsible for inspiring
vision, setting achievable goals, prioritising resource allocations, ensuring standards of
excellence, and guiding and motivating various teams to achieve USAID’s goals in consultation
with five American ambassadors. USAID assistance to five countries, totalled approximately
$600 million in various sectors including governance strengthening; primary, secondary and
tertiary education institutional development; financial sector development; energy and
environment; rural enterprise development; and rural land reform. The Regional Mission for
Central Asia, headquartered in Almaty, Kazakhstan, is a decentralized operation with sizeable
offices in each of the five countries. Led for results a total staff of 260, including 50 Americans,
and over 80 implementing partners.
Noteworthy accomplishments include:
 Strengthened regional integration among the five Central Asian nations through expanded
agricultural trade, transboundary water management, energy trade in cooperation with the
Asian Development Bank and locally-based cross-border cooperation;
 Supported technical assistance to broker a agreement for transboundary water sharing
among the five Central Asian nations to promote regional stability and agriculture and
energy sector development;
 Broadened USAID’s investment strategy and upgraded its organizational structure for
high-impact development activities to accommodate tripling of assistance budget post-
9/11 to $260 million;
 Oversaw a 10-year health sector reform and health management systems strengthening
program to restructure the health system in the five Central Asian Republics from a
curative, tertiary-based system to one that was primary, preventative care-based operating
on cost-sharing and outcomes basis;
 Directed a program of faculty exchanges and best practices transfer to create and
strengthen the first economics department based on market principles at the Kazakhstan
Business and Management School (KIMEP);
 Oversaw USAID’s support for the creation of the American University of Kyrgyzstan,
the first of its kind in Central Asia;
 Spear-headed conceptualization of innovative programs with civil society and private
sector for governance strengthening (independent media, NGO development, civic
education, judicial reform, free and fair elections, human rights), conflict mitigation and
basic education improvement;
 Conceived cutting-edge initiatives to mitigate inter-ethnic and religious conflict through
integrated rural community-based development including water and energy infrastructure
development, youth development by expanding opportunities for business
apprenticeships among youth, inter-community reconciliation through youth-based sports
events and non-bank financial services (credit union and microfinance development).
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8. Sept, 2000 – June, 2002 Deputy Mission Director, USAID/Russia
Served as the alter-ego to the Mission Director and provide strategic vision and coached a multi-
disciplinary team of nine senior professionals to manage a large and highly visible development
program to assist Russians in transforming Russia into a participatory, market-oriented society.
Oversaw USAID/Russia operations to ensure the effective implementation of an annual program
budget of $100 million in grants, total staff of 142 staff and 38 major implementing partners. in
areas of macroeconomic and financial sector policy; governance strengthening – independent
media, NGO institutional development, judicial reform; small business development; rural
agricultural cooperatives development; housing and communal services policy; local
participatory, strategic planning and budgeting.
Personal accomplishments include:
 Managed formulation of new five-year USAID country development strategy for Russia;
 Oversaw the development of the first Women’s Wellness Centers in Russia to provide
advice on family planning, reproductive health and other women’s health issues;
 Oversaw a unique high-impact HIV/AIDS preventative health education targeted at urban
youth in cooperation with WHO;
 Managed a program to deinstitutionalize orphans through an experimental foster care
initiative in urban areas of Russia in cooperation with NGOs. Initiated the development
of rights-based legislation to promote foster care as an alternative to orphanages.
 Guided the development of two, independent and sustainable private think tanks in
Moscow: Institute for Urban Economics and the Center for Fiscal Policy and oversaw
USAID support to Gaidar’s Institute for Transitional Economics;
 Oversaw a program of grants to Russian institutions of higher learning to build capacity
in modern, market-based economics and international trade policy;
 Provided the necessary, timely technical assistance to the State Chairman for Housing
and Ministry of Finance which supported passage of market-based national housing and
communal services policy and urban land code by Russian State Duma;
 Facilitated the long-term sustainability planning and financing for the Sakharov Center
for Human Rights in Moscow; and,
 Served as U.S. Co-Chair for the U.S.-Russian Bilateral Council for Small Business
Development-guided policy and legislative development and pilot initiatives to improve
investment climate for small business development in rural Russia.
Nov, 1997 – Sept, 2000 Deputy Mission Director, USAID/Haiti
Served as the alter-ego to the Mission Director to manage a $110 million grant-funded program
to help Haitians restore democratic governance and rebuild the Haitian economy with reduced
poverty with a staff of 175 and over 40 implementing partners.
Highlights of personal accomplishments include:
 Developed an innovative approach to future USAID and donor assistance, consistent with
the World Bank/IMF’s Poverty Reduction Strategy, in which the Government of Haiti
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9. would articulate an appropriate development agenda through a forged consensus for
policy with civil society and a new National Legislature;
 Oversaw USAID’s maternal and child healthcare program which provided health services
to one-half of Haiti’s total population of 8 million;
 Oversaw one of the first HIV/AIDS prevention programs in Haiti, targeted at youth
education;
 Initiated policy discussion with the Ministry of Education and oversaw pilot programs in
urban Haiti for the improvement of primary education through model cluster schools,
teacher continuing education and certification of private schools which resulted in higher
test scores among children, better teacher attendance and more consistent school
curriculum;
 Coordinated the development of a fast-track post-Hurricane Georges disaster relief
program.
 Oversaw program of formalization of informal land assets in Haiti, under technical
direction of Hernando de Soto, Institute for Liberty and Democracy, Peru.
June, 1996 – Nov, 1997 Director, Environment Office, USAID/Egypt
Managed a multi-faceted $400 million program portfolio for environmental and cultural
resources management. Program components included: energy efficiency, industrial and air
pollution mitigation and environmentally-sustainable tourism development. Major results
included: introduction of unleaded gasoline in Cairo, reducing air pollution by 30%; pilot solid
waste management program and creation of a marine park in the Red Sea Islands. Managed an
office staff of sixteen.
Dec, 1992 – June, 1996 Director, General Development Office, USAID/Russia
As part of the initial group of USAID officers to open the USAID/Russia Mission, conceived and
managed a $500 million program portfolio in privatization of agriculture, farm reorganization,
comprehensive rural and urban land markets development program (privatisation, registration,
zoning, real estate professional development, farm reorganization and property taxation),
housing policy, mortgage market development; fiscal decentralization and local government
strengthening; economic restructuring; and small business development. Managed an office staff
of seventeen.
Nov, 1991 – Dec, 1992 Deputy Director, Regional Housing and Urban
Development Office for South America, USAID/Ecuador
Managed the design and implementation of a $100 million portfolio of shelter, democracy and
governance and urban development programs in the South American region with an office staff
of thirteen. Key accomplishments include: establishing a South American regional facility for
policy dialogue and capacity building among urban development and housing professionals in
South America; and introduced cooperative credit institutions for housing and urban
environmental investments.
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10. Aug, 1990 – June, 1991 Long Term Training
John F, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
Completed a Master of Public Administration degree program under USAID’s Long Term
Training Program
Mar, 1987 – June, 1990 Director (Acting), Regional Housing and Urban Development
Office for the Caribbean, USAID/Jamaica
Served as chief USAID representative in the Caribbean region for shelter and urban
development matters. Managed a $140 million loan portfolio of regional disaster management
and risk reduction, neighborhood upgrading,urban sites and services, urban revitalization and
sustainable tourism development programs. Oversaw the creation of USAID’s Caribbean
Regional Disaster Management and Risk Reduction Program to build capacity and share lessons
learned among Caribbean disaster management professionals for mitigating impacts of repeated
natural disasters. Managed a staff of fifteen.
Mar, 1982 – Oct, 1986 Supervisory Regional Housing and Urban Development
Officer for West/Central Africa, USAID/Cote d’Ivoire
Managed a $100 loan portfolio of shelter and urban development projects including: $65
million urban upgrading program co-financed with the World Bank; and municipal
infrastructure, services and financial management programs. Supported the establishment of a
West African Regional Municipal Officials Training facility to build capacity for sustainable
urban development and urban services delivery.
Dec, 1980 – Mar, 1982 Supervisory Housing and Urban Development Officer
USAID-Washington, DC
Provided central office technical support and program direction to regional housing and urban
development offices for North Africa, Middle East and West and Central Africa.
June, 1979 – Dec, 1980 Senior Program Manager, Tunisia Integrated Regional
Development Program, University of Wisconsin
Coordinated academic program to develop state-of-the-art approaches to urban-based
regional development in central Tunisia and to improve implementation of $40 million regional
economic development program, including irrigated agricultural, rangeland management and
agricultural extension services through management and planning skills training of Tunisian
officials.
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11. Aug, 1976 – June, 1978 Urban Planning Specialist, United Nations Development
Program/WorldBank, `Projet Cissin’,
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Served an urban planning specialist to the Ministry of Public Works, as a U.S. Peace Corps
Volunteer to conduct land use planning and socio-economic studies and community
development activities in support of a $15 million integrated urban development program for
infrastructure, housing, health, education and other community facilities development to
restructure a spontaneous settlement of Ouagadougou and other secondary cities.
Languages – English (native speaker); Russian (fluent: FSI-3+/4+); French (fluent: FSI-4/4);
Spanish (professionally competent: FSI-3+/3+)
Awards:
USAID Distinguished Honor Award – 2008; various USAID Superior and Meritorious
Honor and USAID Performance Awards (1988-2008)
Personal Information
Citizen of U.S.A.
Single (no dependents), Excellent health and available for worldwide duties
Selected Reports and Publications
“Resource Mobilization Strategy for UN-Habitat’s: Role of the Geneva Office for United
Nations Inter-Agency Cooperation.”, Geneva, Switzerland, December, 2013
“A New Strategy for Meeting Humanitarian Challenges in Urban Areas.” Co-authored with
Professor Roger Zetter, Director of the Refugee Studies Center, Oxford University, Forced
Migration Review #38, Oxford University, October, 2011
Urban Risk in Megacities. Presentation at the International Disaster and Risk Conference, World
Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland, 31 May – 5 June, 2010
World Disasters Report, 2010. International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies. , Member of Editorial Board, 2009-2010
Recent Speeches and Public Addresses:
German Bundestag Public Hearing on Urbanization, Committee for Economic Cooperation and
Development, Expert Briefing, Berlin, Germany, 12 November 2014
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12. Post-2015 Development Agenda Briefing to United Nations Member States: Focus Area-10:
Build Safe, Inclusive, Productive and Resilient Cities and Human Settlements, Keynote Briefing,
United Nations, Geneva, Switzerland, 20 May 2014
‘Population, Displacement, Return and Land Tenure – The Case of Democratic Republic of
Congo (UN-Habitat Land Program)’ Case Study Presentation, UNHCR Standing Committee,
Geneva, Switzerland, 6 March 2014
‘Visions for Supporting Peacebuilding in the City’, Panel address at the Geneva Peacebuilding
Platform Annual General Meeting, Geneva, Switzerland, 22 November 2013
‘Slipping through the Net: Supporting Refugees in Urban Areas’, UK Ditchley
Foundation/International Rescue Committee Conference, Presentation on meeting urban
humanitarian challenges, Oxfordshire, 17-19 October 2013
United Nations Inter-Agency Consultative Committee for the Third U.N. Conference on Housing
and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), Co-Chairperson of the Launch of the
Committee at the High-level Segment of ECOSOC with Executive Director of UN-Habitat,
Geneva, 3 July 2013
Global Monitoring (MDG) Report 2013: Rural-Urban Dynamics and the Millenium
Development Goals, World Bank/IMF Report, Moderator for public launch, Geneva, 23 April
2013
Overseas Development Institute-Humanitarian Policy Group, Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs
and Danida, Urban Displacement and Development: Moving the Debate Forward, Panelist for
Roles and Responsibilities for Development and Humanitarian Actors in Urban Displacement
and Chair for Urbanization and Displacement: Development Challenges, Development
Opportunities, Copenhagen, Denmark, 7-8 February 2013
31st
International Conference of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Plenary Address:
Strengthening Normative Frameworks and Addressing Regulatory Barriers Concerning Disaster
Mitigation, Response and Recovery, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies, Geneva, Switzerland, 30 November 2011
Wilton Park Conference on Urban Risks: Moving from Humanitarian Responses to Disaster
Prevention, Key Note Speaker on Meeting Humanitarian Challenges in Urban Areas, Wilton
Park, England, 22 November 2010
Ditchley Foundation Conference: Can the Multi-Lateral System Manage Cliamte Change?, UN
Habitat Representative and Participant on urban climate change challenges, Ditchley Park,
England, 10-12 June 2010
COP15 Global Climate Change Conference, UN HABITAT Delegation Interim Head and
Member – Presentation on Locally-based Initiatives for Climate Change Adaptation: Critical
Role of Local Governments and their Constituencies, Copenhagen, Denmark, December, 2009
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13. Water and Sanitation for the Poor – the Role of Microfinance and Credit, UN HABITAT Panel
Representative and Presenter, 22nd
UN HABITAT Governing Council, Nairobi, Kenya, March
31, 2009
Unite for a Nutrition-Secure India, Launch of new Multi-donor Malnutrition Eradication
Initiative by USAID, DFID, World Bank and UNICEF, Panel co-Chairperson with UK’s
Minister for International Development, New Delhi, India, November 19, 2008
Microsoft/USAID El Mouka Work Force Development among Vulnerable Youth Graduation
Ceremony, Valedictory Speech, New Delhi, India, November 4, 2008
India State Fiscal Management Reform Project – Program Performance Budgeting: Outlays to
Outcomes at the Indian sub-national Level, Ministry of Finance, Keynote Address and
Introduction of Minister of Finance, New Delhi, India, October 22, 2008
Launch of Star Group HIV Insurance Scheme – India’s First Group Insurance Scheme for People
Living with HIV/AIDS (USAID-sponsored Public-Private Partnership), Special Address,
Bangalore, India, August 13, 2008
Expanding India’s Municipal Revenue Bonds: Next Steps, Ministry of Finance/Government of
India Workshop, Special Address, New Delhi, India, July 29, 2008
Capturing Lessons Learned – Women’s Legal Rights Initiative (USAID) Conference, Special
Address, New Delhi, India, July 15, 2008
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Credit Guarantee Consultative Conference – Leverage
Lending to SMEs, Welcome Address, Mumbai, India, July 8, 2008 (in cooperation with IFC,
World Bank and German Technical Cooperation Agency – GTZ)
Making Health Insurance Work for the Poor Conference, Keynote Address, New Delhi, India,
May 5, 2008 (in cooperation with German Technical Cooperation Agency – GTZ)
Agricultural Knowledge Initiative – Agricultural Biotech Conference (in collaboration with
Cornell University), Keynote Address, Coimbatore, India, February 7, 2008
India’s Municipal Bond Market, Securities Exchange Board of India-USAID co-sponsored
conference, Technical Address, Mumbai, India, December 10, 2007
India New Ventures Initiative for Sustainable Business Development, Second Annual
Conference, Keynote Address, Mumbai, India, November 14, 2007
Harvard School of Public Health Executive Program for Health Services Decentralization
Launch in India, New Delhi, India, July 30, 2007, Special Address
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14. Third International Conference of the Education Alliance: Public-Private Partnerships for
Education, March 6, 2007, Hyderabad, India, Keynote Address
Madrassa’s in Elementary Education Improvement in Andhra Pradesh Scaled-Up Program
Launch, Hyderabad, India, December 27, 2006 – Keynote Address
National Media Conclave: ‘Globalizing Indian Cities: Partnership for Change’, New Delhi,
India, May 17, 2006 – Keynote Address
Second International Inter-faith Conference on Prevention and Control of HIV/AIDS, Chennai,
January 7-8, 2006 – Special Address
Green Business Initiative Launch of the Green Business Summitt – World Resources Institute
and CII Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Center, Hyderabad, India, December 8-9, 2005 –
Special Address
Reaching and Education At-Risk Children, National Conference on Elementary Education, New
Delhi, India, August 24, 2005 – Opening Remarks
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