STUDENT MODERATOR:

Ms Sam Nicole Elizabeth

BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF SPEAKER:

Dr. Noeleen Heyzer, a social scientist, was an Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and the highest-ranking Singaporean in the UN system during her term (2007-2015).

She was the first woman to serve as the Executive Secretary of the UN Economic and SocialCommission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) since its founding in 1947. Responding to the 2008 global financial crisis, she developed ESCAP as the platform to support the region in rethinking its development strategy and implementing new drivers of inclusive and sustainable development to sustain its dynamism. Major milestones during her tenure have been groundbreaking intergovernmental agreements and action plans on a regional intermodal transport and logistical system, especially for landlocked developing countries; inclusive socio-economic policies and social protection, regional disaster preparedness, regional connectivity and exploration of an Asian ICT super-highway; financing and technology for an inclusive and green future, and the empowerment of women and youth.

Before that, she was the first Executive Director outside of North America to lead the United Nations Development Fund for Women (1994-2007). She was widely recognized for playing a critical role in the Security Council’s adoption and implementation of landmark Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security, undertaking numerous missions to conflict-affected areas worldwide. Dr. Heyzer served under four UN Secretary Generals (UNSG) and was the UNSG’s Special Adviser for Timor-Leste (2013-2015) working to support peacebuilding, state-building, and sustainable development. She was also a member of the UNSG’s High-Level Advisory Board on Mediation (2017-2021) and the UNSG’s Special Envoy for Myanmar (2021-2023).

A founding member of several international women’s networks, Dr. Heyzer served on numerous boards and advisory committees of international organizations, including the UNDP Human Development Report, the Asian Development Bank’s Eminent Persons Group, Board of Trustees of the National University of Singapore (NUS), member of the Governing Board of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (NUS), member of the Kofi Annan Global Commission on Elections and Democracy in the Digital Age. She was on the High-level Commonwealth Commission on Respect and Understanding chaired by Nobel Laureate Prof. Amartya Sen, and a jury member of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s Innovation Award for Women’s and Girl’s Empowerment, 2010.

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