Before being appointed to the Republic of Moldova, Ian McFarlane served as UNFPA Representative in Nepal (2009-2012). Earlier he worked as a Deputy Representative for UNFPA in Ghana (2006-2008) and as the Special Assistant to the Deputy Executive Director (Programme) in the Office of the Executive Director for UNFPA in New York. As a Policy Specialist in the United Nations Development Group Office in New York (1998-2004), Mr. Ian McFarlane was part of the inter-agency team providing support to UN reform and the Resident Coordinator System.

Mr. McFarlane previously served with international NGO sector: during 1997-1998 he was the Country Representative in Haiti for Intermon, a Spanish NGO and member of Oxfam International, and in 1994-1997 he worked for Actionaid, as a Policy Researcher and then (sponsored by the British Government and UNDP) was seconded to UNDP Geneva to enhance collaboration between UNDP and NGOs in Europe and globally.

Ian McFarlane attained a Bachelor's degree in Modern Languages (French and Spanish) from the University of Cambridge and went on to complete a Master's Degree at the Institute of Latin American Studies/London School of Economics in the Political Economy of Latin America.

Boris Gilca, UNFPA Assistant Representative

He started his career as a family planning doctor and subsequently he established a network of alternative healthcare centers for young people and women in the Republic of Moldova. In the last fifteen years, Boris Gilca actively promoted local and international cooperation efforts in order to reform reproductive health care, therefore starting with 2003, he became the UNFPA Programme Coordinator in the Republic of Moldova. Given his contribution to the society in the Population and Development area, he was also granted with the Civic Merit Medal, one of the highest Moldovan distinctions. He also contributed to the development of the first national policy on Reproductive Health, National Programme for FP/RH and Reproductive Health Law of Moldova, RH Strategy, National Health Policy.

Viorel Gorceag, Programme Analyst

Having two university degrees: in medicine and economy, Viorel Gorceag was employed within the International Organization for Migration (IOM), holding the position of Director of the Center for Assistance and Protection, and also Focal Point for HIV/AIDS. He has large experience in elaborating and implementing policies and projects related to population dynamics, migration, human trafficking, domestic violence, as well as HIV/AIDS. At UNFPA he contributes to the effective management of UNFPA activities in the broader areas of Population and Development, including Reproductive Health and Gender. He also analyzes and assesses relevant political, demographic, social, economic and environmental trends in order to provide substantive inputs to policy formulation and project design and evaluation, joint programming initiatives and national development frameworks.

Natalia Cojohari, Reproductive Health and Youth Associate

With ten-years activity in youth development within civil society organizations, Natalia has extensive experience in implementing projects on youth participation, women rights, developing local and national youth strategies. She also worked as a trainer in human rights education, intercultural dialogue, organizational and strategic management. For the last years, Natalia served for the National Youth Council of Moldova, starting as a board member and lately becoming a vice-president. Natalia Cojohari holds a PhD in Management at the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest. At UNFPA, she is responsible for the Reproductive Health and Youth programs.

Diana Selaru, Administrative/Finance Associate

Diana holds a Master’s degree in Financial and Banking Administration and 8 years of progressively responsible administrative and project management experience. Before joining UNFPA, Diana Selaru worked for the United Nations Development Programme in Moldova (UNDP Moldova) within several Projects performing a variety of specialized activities related to financial administration and procurement management, Human Resources and knowledge sharing to newly employed project assistants. At UNFPA she is in charge of operations, including finance, procurement, human resources, security, UN common services, programme and office management.

Ruslan Bojoc, Driver / Messenger

Ruslan graduated the Transport College from Chisinau and the Technical University of Moldova. Ruslan has extensive work experience as a driver, before joining the UNFPA team he worked at UNDP.