Turhan Saleh, UNDP Resident Representative for Afghanistan

Turhan Saleh assumed his role as UNDP Resident Representative for Afghanistan on 15 July 2026. Before taking up this assignment, he served as Senior Advisor in UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Arab States, focusing on transitions from UN peacekeeping operations and special political missions.
From December 2023 to March 2026, Turhan served as Deputy Director of the UNDP Crisis Bureau, where he led work on humanitarian-to-development transitions, crisis operations, crisis financing and thought leadership. He previously served as UNDP Resident Representative in Ethiopia from May 2019 to November 2023.
Since joining UNDP in 1997, Turhan has held several senior positions, including Director of the Millennium Development Goals Unit, Deputy Director of the Division for UN Affairs, Country Director and Resident Representative ad interim in Nigeria, Chief of the Country Support Team in the Regional Bureau for Africa, and Strategic Plan Coordinator in the Executive Office. He has worked directly with four UNDP Administrators and contributed to almost all UNDP Strategic Plans since their inception.
Turhan began his United Nations career with UNICEF in 1989, working in Ghana, Eritrea and post-apartheid South Africa. He holds a bachelor’s degree with honours in political economy from Cornell University and a master’s degree in public affairs from Princeton University. He also studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Christ Church, University of Oxford.