Iran

Our team

 

Who are the decision makers?

The UN Resident Coordinator and designated representative of the UN Secretary-General is also the leader of the United Nations Country Team playing a central role in coordinating the UN operational activities for development.

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.

Photograph of a man in a suit at a desk in an office, with a world map on the wall.
Levan Bouadze

Mr. Levan Bouadze assumed his role as UNDP Resident Representative in the Islamic Republic of Iran on 1 August 2026. Prior to this, he headed the Strategic Planning and Oversight Unit at the United Nations Development Programme’s Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific in New York. In that role, he led corporate strategic planning and oversight of regional planning processes, analyzed regional developments and trends, and monitored performance against established indicators and targets.

Mr. Bouadze is a senior development professional with nearly three decades of leadership, management, and advisory experience across the United Nations system. His career spans headquarters, regional, and country office roles, where he has supported complex development portfolios and organizational transformation in politically sensitive and diverse contexts. He brings deep knowledge of the global development agenda and the operational architecture of the international development system, with extensive hands-on experience across low-, middle-, and upper-middle-income countries.

Previously, Mr. Bouadze served as Resident Representative of UNDP’s Pacific Multi-Country Office, based in Suva, Fiji, overseeing operations across ten Pacific Island countries. During this assignment, he expanded UNDP’s programme in climate change, environment, resilience, and governance through strengthened partnerships with national governments and development partners.

In different times Mr. Bouadze served as Deputy Resident Representative in Belarus and Resident Representative ad interim in Iran and Uzbekistan, leading UNDP teams through periods of institutional transition. He has also held several senior headquarters positions, including roles in the Regional Bureau for Europe and Central Asia and the Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy. In these roles, he provided strategic advice to senior management, led corporate change processes, managed financial sustainability exercises, and contributed to the development of UNDP institutional policies and resource-allocation models.

Mr. Bouadze holds a Master of Philosophy in Economics from the University of Oxford and a Master of Social Sciences from the University of Birmingham. He is fluent in several UN working languages and has professional experience across Europe, Asia, and the Pacific. His career reflects a sustained commitment to effective multilateralism, partnership-building, and the delivery of development results in complex environments.
Khurshid Alam

Mr Khurshid Alam took on the role of Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP Iran in September 2025.

A passionate advocate for an equitable, multilateral and resilient world, Mr Alam's work spans over 25 years in 50 countries in Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and Europe. He contributed significantly to advancing the theory and practice of climate and disaster resilience and played a critical role in responding to numerous international crises.

His career combines an array of leadership, consulting, and brief media roles. Before his UN career, he was the Managing Director of ThinkAhead Limited, a UK-based consulting company; and at ActionAid, also based in the UK in various roles, including as the International Tsunami Programme Director and Global Policy Advisor.

Before joining UNDP Bhutan, he was with the UNDP Bangladesh Country Office, holding the dual role of the Assistant Resident Representative and Head of the Inclusive Growth and Resilience Portfolio with eight practice areas and an annual delivery of over US$50 million.

A frequent keynote speaker, he authored three books and numerous journal articles - and has been engaged in major inter-governmental processes. He is a self-proclaimed post-humanist and futurist - who believes in planetary health first philosophy. He loves collecting arts and antiques – and is an admirer of world music, politics, and history.

Mr Alam is from Bangladesh. In 1998, he married Farzana Afrin, a statistician by training. They are proud parents of two daughters.

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