Charles (Charlie) Undeland moved to Juba as the World Bank Group (WBG) Country Manager for South Sudan in July 2024.  In this role he provides country-level leadership for engagement with South Sudan for the WBG’s constituent parts, including the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Development Association, the International Finance Corporation, and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.  This leadership role involves providing integrated solutions in partnership with the country’s public and private sector to deliver development results for the South Sudanese people.

Mr. Undeland joined the World Bank in 2009. Prior to his current position, he was a Senior Operations Officer in the Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan, South Sudan Country Management Unit (CMU), as well as the India CMU. In these roles he was a core member of the management teams in formulating the World Bank’s strategy for country engagement and overseeing operational and analytical work in the respective countries. Before joining country management, Mr. Undeland had assignments as a Senior Governance Specialist based in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka where he led several World Bank-financed operations and analytical work, and also led efforts to promote good governance across World Bank country portfolios. 

Mr. Undeland held a wide range of positions before coming to the World Bank, focusing primarily on countries in Eurasia. These included working for the U.S. Agency for International Development in supporting rule-of-law reforms in the Kyrgyz Republic, as well as the Urban Institute in supporting local government management and decentralization efforts across Central Asia. Mr. Undeland also worked with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and as a freelance journalist and Russian-English translator earlier in his career.