[MEDIA ADVISORY] 

Kuala Lumpur, 1 August 2022: UN Assistant Secretary-General, UNDP Assistant Administrator & Director of the Regional Bureau for Asia-Pacific Kanni Wignaraja arrived today in Kuala Lumpur for a high-level dialogue in new development frontiers and to explore new strategic partnership opportunities in deepening UNDP’s support in Malaysia’s advancement of its Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 and transition to a high-income nation that is fairer, greener, more resilient and equal as envisioned in the 12th Malaysia Plan. 

In Kuala Lumpur, Ms. Wignaraja will meet and hold substantive dialogues with leaders of the Government and private sector. These include the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Economic Planning Unit, as well as Ministers from Sarawak State Government, and private sector. These dialogues will build on the excellent collaboration between UNDP and the Government of Malaysia in economic empowerment, environmental sustainability, and social protection and cohesion, as well as strengthen new and emerging opportunities in innovation, SDG-impact financing, accelerated climate actions and energy transition.      

She will also launch three high-profile events alongside other notable Government and industry leaders: the Malaysia Innovates Summit 2022, which will be officiated by the Prime Minister of Malaysia; the Youth Environment Living Labs (YELL) Launch – a joint initiative with UNICEF; and the Policy Dialogue on Strengthening Social Protection in the Post-pandemic Recovery with the Prime Minister’s Department. 

She will also make a brief trip to Kuching, Sarawak, where she will witness first-hand the nature-based solutions for community livelihood and nature conservation co-created with the Semadang community and Sarawak Biodiversity Centre, with support from UNDP. 

In Malaysia, UNDP has been a long-term key development partner of choice since 1961, to achieve sustainable human development in economic, social and environmental fronts. Working closely with the Government, civil society, the private sector and communities, UNDP continues to support to Malaysia’s strong commitment to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and its aspirations to become a high-income, inclusive, environmentally sustainable, and advanced democratic nation. 

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About Ms. Kanni Wignaraja 

Kanni Wignaraja began her role as UNDP's Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific on 18 November 2019. Before, Ms. Wignaraja served as the Acting Assistant Administrator and Director of UNDP's Bureau of Management Services and as Special Adviser to the UNDP Administrator, roles that she performed throughout 2019 after working as the Director of the UN Development Operations Coordination Office from 2014 to 2018. 

Wignaraja has over 25 years of experience with the UN's mission and UNDP's role in the sustainable development agenda. She has a deep knowledge of the Asia-Pacific region and the global, regional, and country-level workings of UNDP across policy, programme, management, and operations. She was UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Viet Nam in early 2000. 

Prior to joining the UN, Kanni worked with the Ford Foundation in New York. Kanni has contributed to numerous papers, articles, and conferences in areas of public policy, institutional reform, capacity development, human rights, and leadership. 

Wignaraja holds a master's degree in Public Administration (Development Economics) from Princeton University and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Bryn Mawr College. 

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