Head of the Resident Coordinator's Office in Papua New Guinea

Meet Kesang Choden Phuntsho, Head of the Resident Coordinator’s Office and Strategic Planner in Papua New Guinea.  Kesang played a leading role in the development of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2024– 2028) that is driven by the needs of country’s most vulnerable and marginalized populations. Kesang convened the UN country team and organized a series of consultations to involve marginalized populations and those at risk of being left behind such as persons with disabilities, youth, people living with HIV, and human rights defenders.  For the first time, refugees were invited to the consultations, which revealed a number of specific challenges, for instance, lack of access to land and public services.  The Framework focuses on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment as one of its five strategic priorities, to reflect the country’s specific context.

Furthermore, Kesang has been instrumental in initiating strategic partnership discussions with the World Bank, which led the Bank to become a signatory to the Cooperation Framework. This provides an entry point for enhanced UN- World Bank collaboration in more specific areas of need in Papua New Guinea.