Lionel Laurens
UNDP Resident Representative in Mongolia
Mr. Lionel Laurens assumed the role of UNDP Resident Representative in Mongolia on 1 August 2026. In this capacity, the RR is delegated authority by the UNDP Administrator to provide leadership to the UNDP management team to deliver high impact results in Mongolia. He exercises accountability for UNDP’s policy, programme, partnerships, resources and business operations.
His career began in Asia, where he worked on rural development and community driven poverty reduction programmes in Cambodia and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.
He later held senior programme roles with UNDP in Afghanistan, Iraq and Sierra Leone, leading initiatives to respond to crises, rebuild rural infrastructures, strengthen governance and service delivery and promote economic development and resilience.
Mr. Laurens served as UNDP Resident Representative in Somalia (2023–2026) and in Zambia (2019–2023), and as Country Director of UNDP Guinea (2015–2019).
A French national, Mr. Laurens holds a Master of Engineering and Management from the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts et Métiers, France, and an MSc in Sustainability and Responsibility from Ashridge Business School, United Kingdom.
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