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Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam

Our Team

Mr. Edward Vrkić - Resident Representative, UNDP Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam

Mr. Vrkić is currently serving as UNDP’s Resident Representative to Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam. Prior to this, he was the Strategic Adviser to UNDP’s Bureau for Asia and the Pacific and before this, UNDP’s Deputy Resident Representative to Papua New Guinea. He has served in various senior diplomatic, advisory, civil service and private sector positions over the last 25 years across the Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa. These include for the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia’s Agency for International Development, as Senior Foreign Policy Adviser to the Australian Foreign Minister, Chief of Staff to Pacific Island Forum Leaders, and Australia’s Head of Aid Operations and Humanitarian Coordinator to Papua New Guinea.

Mr. Vrkić has a master’s degree in international relations (with distinction) from the Australian National University and a Bachelor of Arts with honours (first class) from the University of Wollongong. He has extensive experience delivering development cooperation, public policy, communications, humanitarian response, leading negotiations, implementing reform programs, and driving innovation across a wide range of countries and socio-economic contexts.
Mr. Besian Xhezo - Deputy Resident Representative, UNDP Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei Darussalam

Besian Xhezo is a seasoned development professional with over 15 years of international experience in strategic planning, inter-agency coordination, partnership development, and UN system reform. He joins the UNDP Country Office in Malaysia as the new Deputy Resident Representative for UNDP in Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei Darussalam, bringing a strong track record of advancing inclusive development and institutional transformation across diverse country contexts.

Prior to his current role, Besian served as Special Assistant to the UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, where he advised on strategic management and performance, covering 24 UNDP Country Offices across the Asia Pacific region. He played a key role in strengthening high-level partnerships with governments, international financial institutions, and development partners, while enhancing organizational responsiveness and risk management.

From 2012 to 2020, Besian held multiple roles and with increasing responsibilities, leading UNDP’s global engagement in UN system-wide reform, including as Policy Specialist and Team Leader for UN System Affairs. He represented UNDP in interagency bodies and supported the organization’s adaptation to evolving development financing and coordination models. His work contributed to greater coherence in joint programming and innovation in funding mechanisms.

Besian’s field experience includes leading coordination efforts in Albania’s One UN Programme, managing donor-funded projects. He also supported strategic planning with UNDP offices in China and Libya. Prior to joining the UN, Besian worked in the private sector where he led Corporate Social Responsibility efforts for a large Telecom provider.

A Fulbright Scholar, Besian holds a Master’s Degree in international development policy from George Washington University and a Bachelor’s Degree in political science and EU Studies from the American University in Bulgaria. He is fluent in English, Albanian, and Italian, with working knowledge of Spanish and French.
    Head of Sustainable Finance & Innovation
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    Yin Wei Chong

    As the Head of SDG Impact, Finance and Innovation at UNDP Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam, Yin Wei leads the design and implementation of innovative programming and financing solutions in collaboration with government, private sector, and civil society partners to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Her portfolio focuses on key thematic areas including climate change, nature and biodiversity financing, energy transition, food security, and digital inclusion. She also represents the Malaysia Country Office in the global Digital Advocate Network.

    Previously, Yin Wei served as Head of Solutions Mapping under UNDP’s Accelerator Lab in Malaysia, where she identified grassroots challenges and emerging solutions, transforming them into actionable policy recommendations and scalable development models. Her work included initiatives such as rural e-commerce, climate-resilient agriculture in Sabah, green technologies, behavioral insights for environmental action, and participatory design in urban development. She also contributed to strengthening Malaysia's local innovation ecosystem—spanning startups, social enterprises, and SMEs—through the application of SDG Impact Standards.

    Before joining UNDP, she worked at Malaysia’s Ministry of Education (Education Performance and Delivery Unit), where she advanced equity in education through the District Transformation Programme, addressing disparities across urban-rural, gender, and socioeconomic dimensions. Earlier in her career, as a field monitoring and evaluation officer with UNHCR Malaysia, she pioneered a tertiary education access program for refugee youth and supported community-led youth initiatives.

    Yin Wei holds an MSc in Rehabilitation Psychology with a focus on cognitive science and a BSc (Hons) in Applied Psychology and Management Studies from the University of Nottingham. She is certified in PRINCE2, Managing Successful Programmes (MSP), Agile Project Management, and by the Blockchain Academy.

      Head of Governance & Local Development
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      Jessie Cheah 

      Jessie Cheah heads the Governance and Local Development Portfolio in UNDP Malaysia office. Her work scope is wide ranging comprising parliamentary reforms and strengthening, advocating for business and human rights implementation, and taking action to build community, specifically youth, resilience against violent extremism; all contributing towards the growth of a peaceful, progressive and prosperous Malaysia. Additionally, she is also responsible to oversee initiatives on growth and development of communities, recognizing local strengths and providing support for their progress; including through advancing sustainable practices in the tourism sector, expanding just transition action in rural communities and engaging with youth to take action for the environment and climate change issues.  

      Prior to joining UNDP Malaysia, Jessie was the Secretary of the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) where she led the work of the Commission for 5 years, ensuring that the Commission’s decisions and directions were implemented in a responsible, efficient and timely manner.  

       

      She has varied professional background, generally relating to humanitarian perspectives, with core interest in sustainable development and upholding social well-being of society overall. A qualified dental surgeon and advanced training in international public health, she has moved on to management roles with substantial knowledge on public health and human rights issues, focusing on policy engagement and advocacy, as well as capacity building approaches. She has experience working with/in civil society organisations, at the international level including UN agencies and government ministerial entities.  

       

       

       

       

       

       

        Head of Nature, Climate & Energy
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        Nosrat Ravichandran


        Nosrat heads the Nature, Climate and Energy team in UNDP Malaysia Country Office, responsible for programming and oversight of all environmental-related projects undertaken by UNDP in Malaysia. Before joining UNDP, Nosrat led Lestari Capital’s operations in Malaysia, implementing innovative financing mechanisms to channel private sector financing for long-term conservation. She previously served at the Federal Government of Malaysia's Department of Wildlife and National Parks and the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity in the Philippines, implementing conservation programmes with public and development funds. Her experience includes working at the site level with communities and rangers up to policy level with officials in the ASEAN member states. She has 20 years of experience in the field of biodiversity conservation, wildlife and protected areas management, ecotourism, science and policy interface and conservation financing.  

          Head of Programme Sarawak
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          Edmund Lau Chai Ming


          Edmund Lau Chai Ming, Head of the Integrated Sarawak Programme at the UNDP Malaysia Office, oversees diverse projects in Sarawak, spanning from nature conservation, urban development, youth, and sustainable tourism. A coral reef ecologist with a BSc and MSc from Universiti Malaya, he has over 20 years of experience in marine and environmental conservation. He co-founded Reef Stakes®️, an educational card game on marine conservation, and is an alumnus of Young South East Asia Leadership Initiative (YSEALI). Recognized as the 2019 ASEAN Youth Eco-Champion, he was also named a Coral Champion in 2022 and a Wiki Impact 100 Changemaker in 2023.

            Head of Inclusive Growth & Prosperity
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            Herlianna Naning 

            Herlianna Naning is the Head of the Inclusive Growth and Prosperity Programme at UNDP Malaysia, where she leads strategic collaboration with key government bodies—including the Prime Minister’s Department and Ministry of Economy—to strengthen national social policies that ensure no one is left behind. Herlianna spearheaded the development of Malaysia’s first National Social Protection Policy and advanced poverty measurement through the multidimensional poverty index. She is currently working with Jabatan Kemajuan Orang Asli (JAKOA) to replace the 1961 Orang Asli Administrative Policy with a more inclusive and sustainable development framework, and partnering with the ILO to improve labor market access and social protection for persons with disabilities. 

              Head of Operations
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              Mahalatchmy Paidathally
               

              Mahalatchmy Paidathally is an experienced operations professional with over 25 years of expertise in logistics, procurement, administration and finance. She has a proven track record of driving operational excellence and innovation, delivering transformative results across diverse industries in the private sector.

              Prior to her current role, Maha served as the Administrative Analyst at UNDP Global Shared Services Centre (GSSC) from 2018 – 2023, where she was responsible for managing the Centre’s core operational functions. Prior to joining UNDP, she held several leadership roles in the private sector across finance, logistics, procurement and administration.  She also served as a Lead Auditor for ISO 9001 and ISO14001 standards, was a core member of the Occupational Safety & Health Committee and is a certified environmental professional in Scheduled Waste Management.  

              Maha holds a Master’s Degree in Business Management from Anglia Ruskin University (UK) and a Bachelor’s Degree with Distinction in Business Administration from the RMIT University (Australia).  

                Head of Communications
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                Aiezat Fadzell 

                Aiezat Fadzell is the Head of Communications at UNDP Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei Darussalam, leading media engagement, digital outreach, and stakeholder relations to support UNDP’s programmes. With over 11 years of experience in journalism, public campaigns, crisis communications, and events across multilateral institutions, government agencies, and non-profits, he brings practical expertise in ensuring UNDP’s messages reach diverse audiences and foster understanding of sustainable development initiatives. 

                  Development Economist

                  Ashvinder Singh

                   

                  Ashvinder Singh is the Development Economist at UNDP Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei Darussalam, where he leads research and thought leadership on sustainable development. He has 14 years of experience across public and private sectors, including oil and gas, aviation, and development. His expertise covers risk and project management, regulatory affairs, and economic and industry research. Previously, he worked in a national oil corporation and an aviation regulatory body. 

                  At UNDP, he previously headed the Governance Programme, working on human rights, anti-corruption, parliamentary reform, and sustainability. Ashvinder holds an MSc in Political Science and Political Economy from the London School of Economics and a BA in Business Economics and Finance from the University of Nottingham (Malaysia). He also holds certifications from the International Air Transport Association and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.
                   


                   

                    Partnerships Coordinator

                    Khairunnisa Aris 

                    General enquiries: registry.my@undp.org
                    Media enquiries : Aiezat Fadzell +6012 668 5747 | aiezat.fadzell@undp.org (Head of Communications for UNDP Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam)