Mrs. Sharifa Ali-Abdullah is the current Deputy Head of UNDP’s Multi-Country Office in Trinidad and Tobago which also has responsibility for Aruba, Curacao and Sint Maarten and oversees the entire programme portfolio.   

Mrs. Ali-Abdullah is an excellence-driven leader with a verifiable track record and reputation for stellar work and has received UNDP’s Certificate of Special Recognition for exceptional performance for 2023. 

Sharifa is an economist by profession, graduating among the top of her class at Columbia University, New York with a Master’s Degree in  Economic Policy Management. 

Sharifa has over 20 years of diverse development experience working closely with heads of government, finance and planning ministers and has served in several senior positions including CEO, Senior Coordinator, and Senior Economist within key public sector agencies in Trinidad and Tobago namely at the Office of the Prime Minister and Ministry of Finance.  She was also a part-time lecturer at the University of the West Indies.   

She has worked on many socio-economic issues including diversification, sustainable development, trade, investment, and tourism development.  She has been a member of the top team that prepared national budgets and national development plans. 

She partnered with international and regional bodies including UN Agencies, IMF, World Bank, IDB, OAS, Commonwealth Secretariat and CARICOM on several projects.  

Sharifa represented Trinidad and Tobago and UNDP with compelling conviction and credibility and has led missions across the globe. In addition to her tremendous contribution to the national and regional spheres, she has been intimately involved in community outreach within her community. 

She has implemented several programmes for families, women, and children and has also served on the boards of several NGOs and is co-founder and President of the M2 Hope Foundation – a registered charity for underprivileged children. She is a mentor for women and girls and a sought-after motivational speaker. She is married and is a proud mom of two young professional women – a medical doctor and a law student.