Joseph (JD) D'Cruz is Senior Advisor for Strategy and Planning to the Administrator of UNDP. He supports UNDP's senior leadership in the development and implementation of corporate strategies, processes and initiatives to deliver the organization's mandate and objectives.

Prior to this role JD was the UNDP Asia-Pacific Team Leader for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development, based at the Bangkok Regional Hub. Working with a team of specialist advisors and a regional network of 24 UNDP Country Offices, JD supported Asia-Pacific countries to advance development priorities including Agenda 2030 and the SDGs, urbanisation, inclusive and equitable growth strategies, environmental sustainability, extractive industries, and early recovery from crises and disasters. As part of UNDP’s Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, JD also led UNDP’s global task team on urbanisation.

JD was born in Malaysia, and educated in Malaysia, Australia and the United Kingdom. He holds degrees in politics, economics and international development. Prior to joining the international civil service, JD was a consultant working on a range of development and conservation initiatives for clients in the UN system, multilateral development banks, NGOs and Governments. He started his career as a management consultant working on business strategy, feasibility analysis, privatizations and sector strategies.