Japan and UNDP

UNDP Goodwill Ambassador

Ms. Misako Konno

Ms. Misako Konno, an accomplished Japanese actress, was appointed as one of UNDP's Global Goodwill Ambassadors in October 1998. Apart from Ms. Konno, UNDP also has four other Goodwill Ambassadors. Since becoming a Goodwill Ambassador, Ms. Konno has visited Cambodia (May 1999,August 2007), Palestine (July 2000), Bhutan (June 2001), Ghana (August 2003), Timor-Leste (July 2004) , Viet Nam (August 2005),Mongolia(August 2006)and Tanzania(August 2008) to take a "behind the scenes" look at what UNDP is doing in development assistance. Additionally, Ms. Konno has promoted key messages of UNDP targeted mainly at Japanese audiences through TV/radio appearances, public lectures and writing essays and articles.
After completing these visits, Ms. Konno declared that, "I feel that development assistance is similar to parenting. For kids to become independent, parents should keep eyes on them for a long time. "

Profile

Actor/Author/TV Personality, Graduate of Keiko University, Japan

Debuted as an actress in the 1979 movie"Ogon no Partner"( Golden Partner). Appears in various television programmes, movies and stage productions. Also an active writer and winner of the 1995 Japan Writer's Prize (Women's Literary Category) for her science essay" Sora Tobu Hotate"(The Flying Scallop). Published an essay on child rearing in 1999 entitled " Kaijuu no Sodatekata"( How to Raise a Monster). Also appeared in NHK's morning TV drama "Asuka" in the same year. She acts in a famous play written by Junichiro Tanizaki "Sasame Yuki (The Makioka Sisters)" since 2004, the play has been restaged many times with Ms.Konno as one of the lead characters and her performance is highly praised.
In 2008, she published an essay book"Lalala Shinzentaishi ( La-la Good Will Ambassador )" in commemoration of her 10th anniversary as UNDP Good Will Ambassador.