Vientiane, 6 May 2019 - Ms. Ricarda Rieger presented her credentials today to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Mr. Thongpane Savanphet, as the new Resident Representative of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Lao PDR.

Ms. Rieger is taking office as the first UNDP Resident Representative. Until 2018, the UN Resident Coordinator was also the UNDP Resident Representative. This structure changed in May 2018, after UN Member States adopted a resolution to reform the UN development system, transforming its structure and leadership to better serve countries and their people.

These reforms will ensure that UNDP is better positioned to support countries in their mission to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“This ‘Next Gen UNDP’ is engaged in creating new partnerships and exploring innovative approaches to complex development challenges across Asia and the Pacific,” said Ms. Rieger. “The graduation of Lao PDR from Least Developed Country Status is no small challenge. But I am confident that the UN system working together with government, and our many partners, can support the country, to achieve its development priorities.”

Before her appointment, Ms. Rieger served as Team Leader for Afghanistan, East Asia, and the Pacific Support Team, at UNDP’s Regional Hub in Bangkok. Ms. Rieger has been with the UNDP for 29 years. She has worked for the agency in Cambodia, DPR Korea, Egypt, Philippines, Thailand, Ukraine, and at UNDP Headquarters in New York.

A national of Germany, Ms. Rieger holds a Degree from the University of Heidelberg, Germany.

UNDP has been working in Lao PDR since 1976. Some of its key objectives and programmes are focused on reducing poverty, supporting livelihoods, building good governance, engaging in the removal of unexploded ordnance (UXO), protecting the environment and building resilience against climate change and natural disasters.

Please read this article in Lao.

For more information, please contact:

Aksonethip Somvorachit, Communications Analyst, UNDP Lao PDR

Email: aksonethip.somvorachit@undp.org

Telephone: 021 267 778

Mobile: 020 5502 1550