Reflections on the United Nations Development Program

David Akopyan, one of the first AUA graduates, has almost 25 years of experience in global development. Starting with UNDP Armenia in 1994, he has worked on development in nine countries and UNDP HQ on two assignments. His experience with peace building and development covers a diverse group of countries such as Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Latvia, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Somalia. In this public lecture, some reflections will be provided on democracy, freedom, corruption, history, institutions, national leadership and economic progress/human development in various contexts and what the UNDP and other development partners can do.
David Akopyan holds an MBA from American University of Armenia; and a PhD from Yerevan State University in laser physics and MA in theoretical physics. He has 22 years of UN experience and is now Senior UNDP Deputy Country Director for programmes in Somalia. He has served on assignments and missions in Latvia, Tajikistan, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Somalia, Kazakhstan and in New York for managerial and programme development positions. He has 10 years of additional experience in Research & Development and statistical analysis of complex systems. In Somalia together with a key focus on short term peace and state building goals, he was able to initiate the national wide discussion on longer term development planning and to advocate SDGs for a country in crisis. Prior that he was UNDP Deputy Country director in Afghanistan.

In 2006-2009 he worked at the UNDP HQ as Planning Advisor. Before New York, for 5 years he was in Central Asia with the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO – Chief Technical Adviser of Regional Trade Program in Central Asia and the UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Kyrgyzstan. In 1994-2001 he was Assistant Resident Representative with UNDP in Armenia, actively involved in national development policy formulation. In 1991-1993 he was Senior Research Associate with Center for Business Research and Development at the American University of Armenia.
The event is open to the public, closed for media.
Venue: Alex and Marie Manoogian Hall, PAB
Organizer: AUA Political Science and International Affairs Program