Biography

Leila Gharagozloo Pakkala

Director, UNICEF Supply Division

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Leila Gharagozloo Pakkala, Director, UNICEF Supply Division

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Leila Gharagozloo Pakkala has been the Director of UNICEF Supply Division since 1 October 2023. In this capacity, Ms. Gharagozloo Pakkala leads and oversees UNICEF’s global supply and logistics operations and related partnerships in both development and humanitarian settings.

With over 30 years of humanitarian and development experience at country, regional, and headquarter levels, Ms. Gharagozloo Pakkala has contributed to and led various organizational initiatives. This has included responsibilities for strategic direction and guidance to UNICEF teams in delivering large-scale organizational commitments, strategies and plans. It has also entailed extensive engagement with governmental, multilateral and bilateral partners, private sector corporations, foundations, industry leaders and non-governmental organizations to establish key alliances, influence policy and programming decisions, manage complex negotiations, and deliver substantive income growth from various channels.

Ms. Gharagozloo Pakkala most recently served with UNICEF as Senior Advisor, Strategic Partnerships, supporting the Executive Director and her senior team on key partnerships and global initiatives; as Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, providing leadership, oversight, and guidance to 21 country offices; and as Director of Private Fundraising and Partnerships, overseeing private sector operations of the organization. She has also served in several senior management and programme coordination functions, such as UNICEF Representative in Mozambique, Deputy Representative in Somalia, Senior Programme Officer in New York, Programme Coordinator in Northern Macedonia, and Advocacy and Child Protection Advisor in Uganda. Before UNICEF, she worked with the UN in Ethiopia.

Ms. Gharagozloo Pakkala is a national of Iran. She holds a Master of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.

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