Mark Malloch-Brown has a wealth of international development experience, including prominent positions in the United Nations and on the boards of leading international NGOs. As a Minister of State in the Foreign Office he covered Africa and Asia and was a member of Gordon Brown’s cabinet. He had previously served as Deputy Secretary-General and Chief of Staff of the UN under Kofi Annan.
For six years previously he was Administrator of the UNDP, leading the UN’s development efforts around the world. He was a lead participant in the drafting of the Millenium Development Goals and then as the UN's top Development official led both the political campaign to build support for the goals and the operational plan to secure their implementation. He was widely credited with making the UNDP a leading voice and player on such issues.
Other positions have included serving as a Vice-President at the World Bank and the lead international partner in a political consulting firm. He also has served as Vice-Chairman of the World Economic Forum. He began his career as a journalist on The Economist and is chairman of the Europe, Middle East and African practice of FTI Consulting, a leading global advisory firm.
He has broadcast and written about development and international issues over many years. In 2011, The Unfinished Global Revolution, his semi-biographical call for action to accelerate international development and global government was published. It received critical claim and has just been issued in paperback.
He is chair of the Royal Africa Society and on a number of non-profit and advisory boards, including the International Crisis Group, the Open Society Foundation, Save The Children International, and The Children's Investment Fund Foundation. He is also involved in local business development in Africa serving on the boards of a number of start-ups and investment funds. He is a member of the House of Lords and was knighted in 2007.