Humanitarian and Development Advisor, United Nations

Policy Fellow, Centre for Science and Policy

David Das Neves serves as the Humanitarian and Development Advisor to the UN Assistant Secretary-General, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine since September 2023.

David has expertise in transitional development assistance, post-conflict stabilisation and recovery, economic policy reform, and development financing, with experience in fragile contexts, developing countries, and emerging economies.

Before his current role in Ukraine, David held various positions with the United Nations Development Programme at both country and regional levels. Most recently, he worked in Iraq, based in Baghdad, where he helped shape the strategic direction of stabilisation and recovery efforts in areas liberated from ISIL and supported the transition of the stabilisation agenda to the Iraqi government post-2023. Previously, he provided policy advice and technical assistance to over 40 governments across Eastern Europe, the South
Caucasus, Central Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa on development and sectoral planning for inclusive growth and poverty reduction. Before joining the UN, David worked with Human Rights Watch in Geneva.

David holds a double Master’s degree in Public Management from the University of Geneva and SDA Bocconi and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Lausanne. He also holds executive certificates in Statistics and Econometrics for Policy Evaluation from the University of Geneva and in Artificial Intelligence from the University of Oxford.

He is fluent in English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.