Kuala Lumpur, 15 April – Mr. Haoliang Xu, the Under-Secretary-General and Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), arrived today for a four-day mission to Malaysia, from April 15 to April 18, 2024.

Mr Haoliang Xu’s mission is centred on his participation at the 2024 Planetary Health Annual Meeting (PHAM), a platform that connects the global Planetary Health community to seek solutions for the grand challenges facing humanity and provide tools and drivers to support systemic change. He will deliver a Keynote Address at the event opening, titled “Global Stewardship for the Great Transition”, which emphasises the urgent need to galvanise climate action. Recognizing the key role that Asia plays in Planetary Health challenges and solutions, PHAM 2024 will be the first of its kind to be held in Southeast Asia, with Malaysia proudly holding host title.

During his visit, Mr. Xu will also take the opportunity to engage with key stakeholders and discuss new development policy frontiers in alignment with UNDP’s Strategic Plan and the implementation of Malaysia’s Twelfth Malaysia Plan (12MP). Over the course of four days, Mr. Xu will attend several high-level meetings with pivotal national stakeholders, including the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Deputy Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia, Deputy Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI), Minister of Economy, and Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability.

Leveraging Malaysia’s status as an Upper Middle-Income Country (UMIC), Mr. Xu will also engage with relevant stakeholders to create an enabling environment for innovative Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) financing at the national level. Mr. Xu will further participate in an industry roundtable engagement, themed ‘Scaling Up Blended Finance for Nature Positive Investments in Malaysia’. The roundtable will facilitate conversation and forge actionable strategies for scaling up blended finance approaches conducive to climate and biodiversity outcomes in Malaysia. Stakeholders from Bursa Malaysia, Securities Commission Malaysia, and Asian Development Bank (ADB), amongst others, will be present.

Mr. Haoliang Xu's mission underscores UNDP's commitment to supporting Malaysia's sustainable development journey, addressing climate change, and fostering inclusive and resilient communities. By facilitating dialogue and collaboration, this mission also hopes to unlock new avenues for sustainable financing mechanisms to drive progress in Malaysia towards the SDGs.

Note to Editor: About Haoliang Xu

With almost three decades of experience at UNDP, Mr. Xu has an unyielding commitment to human development and rich experience in international development cooperation across multiple regions. Since joining UNDP in 1994, he has fulfilled various roles within the organization, working in field and headquarters assignments in Asia-Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, including assignments in Iran, Timor-Leste, Pakistan and Kazakhstan.

Mr. Xu, of China, currently serves as UN Assistant Secretary-General, UNDP Assistant Administrator, and Director of the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS), a role he has carried out with distinction since July 2019. Between 2013 and 2019, Haoliang was UN Assistant Secretary-General, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific.

Prior to joining the United Nations, Mr. Xu worked in the fields of civil engineering in China and the United States. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Bridge Engineering from Tongji University, a Masters degree in Management Science from the Stevens Institute of Technology, and a Masters degree in International Affairs from Columbia University. He is married and the proud father of one child.

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For media enquiries
Kindly contact Lalitha Monisha, Communications Consultant for UNDP Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam: lalitha.monisha@undp.org