Libya
OUR LEADERSHIP
Senior Management
The UNDP Resident Representative 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.

Marc-André Franche
Resident Representative ad interim for Libya
@MAFrancheUN
Mr. Marc-André Franche brings to the position over 20 years of experience in international development and conflict prevention with the United Nations. He previously headed the UN Secretary-General's Peacebuilding Fund, which supports more than 40 countries around the world to prevent violent conflict, avoid the resumption of conflict or encourage reconciliation.
Before that, Mr. Franche was Country Director of UNDP in Pakistan from 2013 to 2016, where he led a team working on conflict prevention, governance and climate change adaptation. He was also Deputy Director of UNDP in Haiti, a position he held from 2008 to 2012. Between 2004 and 2008, Mr. Franche worked for UNDP in New York as a program advisor for conflict prevention in Latin America and the Caribbean. In this capacity, he led the regional program on conflict prevention and supported consensus building and dialogue in the region. Previously, he worked on applied research and policy dialogue on conflict prevention for UNDP in Colombia and on poverty reduction and local governance for UNDP in Bolivia.
Mr. Marc- André Franche is Canadian, holds a master's degree in development policy from the London School of Economics, European studies from Lund University and a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Montreal. He is married and has a son.

UNDP Deputy Resident Representative Programme for Libya
Christopher Laker
Deputy Resident Representative-Programme for Libya
Christopher has over 23 years of project/programme management experience (with about 18 years of experience in development programme/project management specifically in conflict and post-conflict contexts/settings first in Northern Uganda (2004 – 2008) during the LRA insurgency, Somalia/Kenya (2008 – 2010), Darfur/Sudan (2011 – 2021) managing donor funded projects in humanitarian response programming, early recovery, rule of law/governance, livelihoods, reconstruction and development interventions through decentralized frameworks, and Libya since September 2021.
Christopher has extensive rural development experience, initially as a member of a European Consulting firm in Uganda (and headquartered in the UK) (2000 – 2004) and subsequently as a Project Manager/Coordinator for a USD 100 million five-year World Bank-supported project in Northern Uganda focusing on rural livelihoods, community infrastructural development and community reconciliation and conflict management using community-driven development (CDD) approaches.
He started his UN career in UNDP Somalia (2009) where he managed a UN Joint Programme enhancing the protection, reintegration and resettlement of IDPs in Somalia. The Joint Programme had five UN partners (UNHCR, UN-HABITAT, UNICEF, FAO and UNDP) and was implemented in Bosaso, Puntland. He then moved to Darfur, Sudan in 2011, first as a Regional Programme Manager for a cluster of rule of law and governance projects, and ending his tour of duty in Sudan as the Senior Regional Coordinator and Head of the UNDP Team in Darfur, providing oversight for five field offices. In Darfur, he managed several joint programmes, notably a Rule of Law Joint Programme with UN agencies and the UN peacekeeping mission (UNAMID) during 2014 – 2018, and a Joint programme with UN Women on Reconciliation and Peaceful Co-existence. In Darfur (2018 – 2020), he led the UNDP partnership with the hybrid UN – African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) where he supported resource mobilization efforts during the UNAMID transition period (drawdown and closure). During this process, UNDP accessed USD 18 million from assessed budgets in New York and co-led the rule of law and human rights priority areas. UNDP supported capacity building for the justice sector and law enforcement institutions in Darfur through infrastructural investments, training of staff on technical mandates and enhancing the functionality of institutions at both state and locality levels. Christopher has a master’s degree in epidemiology and economics (1994) and a Ph.D. in epidemiology and economics (1999).

Operations Manager
Samantha Gunasekera
Operations Manager
Ms. Samantha Gunasekera brings to the position over 20 years of experience in international organizations and the private sector. Samantha is a Certified Practicing Accountant (CPA) by profession, with a strong interest in the international development sector. She has previously worked in the Airline, software, and utility industries prior to joining the UNDP. She brings in experience from diverse backgrounds.
Before joining the Libya country office Samantha was the Operations Manager in the Philippines and Sri Lanka country offices. Samantha was a key member of the Typhoon Odette response team in the Philippines in December 2021.
Ms. Gunasekera is originally from Sri Lanka, living and settled in Australia with her family. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accountancy along with her professional studies as a CPA. Samantha is completing her MBA at present from Deakin university in Australia. She is married and has 2 children.