Ms. Shoko Noda has been UNDP Resident Representative in India since May 2019, when she took charge of one of UNDP’s largest country programmes globally. She leads country office activities on localizing the Sustainable Development Goals, climate action and biodiversity conservation, digital health and governance, and skilling. She is also a strong advocate for gender equality.

Between October 2014 and April 2019, she was UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in the Maldives. Effectively engaging key national interlocutors, political parties, human rights defenders, and UN member states, Ms. Noda was pivotal in taking forward both the development agenda and political dialogue during the crucial transitional post-election period.

Prior to that, Ms. Noda led UNDP’s country offices in Nepal and Mongolia. Through the course of her international career with the UN, Ms. Noda has served in diverse and challenging contexts across many geographies, from Pakistan (2005-06) to the Democratic Republic of Congo (2005), the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (2001-02), Kosovo (2000-01) and Tajikistan (1998-2000). Ms. Noda’s working career began in 1995, as a Researcher in the Behavioural Sciences Department with the Mitsubishi Research Institute Inc. in Tokyo.

Ms. Noda holds a B.A. and an M.A. in Political Science from Keio University, Japan.