International Development Law Organization

Director-General

Jan Beagle is the Director-General of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO). She was elected by Member Parties on November 13, 2019 and took up her position formally on January 1, 2020. She was re-elected to a second four-year term in November 2023.

Ms. Beagle is a diplomat from New Zealand and a senior international civil servant. She brings some forty years of experience of multilateral diplomacy, working on peace and security, development, human rights, management, gender and organizational reform.

Ms. Beagle has served as Special Adviser to the United Nations Secretary-General on System-wide Implementation of Chief Executives Board (CEB) decisions; United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance; Deputy Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS); Deputy Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva; and Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management. She has held senior positions in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General, the Office of the Administrator of UNDP, and the Department of Political and Security Council Affairs.

Throughout her career, Ms. Beagle has played a leadership role in the interagency bodies of the UN system, including as Chair of the High-Level Committee on Management of the CEB, and Chair of the CEB Task Force to address sexual harassment in UN organizations. She was formerly the Chair of the Assistant Secretary-General Advisory Group of the UN Development Group and a member of the Board of the UN System Staff College. 

Ms. Beagle is a committed advocate for gender equality and an active member of the International Gender Champions, a leadership network that brings together senior female and male decision makers to break down gender barriers. She has spearheaded the development and implementation of programs and approaches to improve and accelerate diversity and inclusion, women’s empowerment and rights-based approaches.

Ms. Beagle began her career in the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including as a delegate to the United Nations in New York. She holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in History and International Relations from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. She is married with three daughters.