For more than four decades, André François Carvalho led a remarkable career in international development across continents. He has served in several high-level positions at the United Nations Development Programme during critical junctures in countries such as Burundi, the Comoros, Côte d'Ivoire, Germany and the United States. Born in Ziguinchor, in the Casamance region of Senegal, where he began his primary and secondary education, Carvalho went on to study at Université Cheikh Anta Diop Dakar, and then at the Sorbonne, Université Paris-IV; the Institute of Social Studies, The Hague; and for a doctorate in Economics at the University of Amsterdam, both in The Netherlands.