Education
University of London - UK

MS Environmental Management

1996

University of Peshawar

MSc

1988

Project management Professionals (PMDPro), Certification authority APM Group, License# PMD/552100

Harvard Management Mentor Course – certification course in business management, 2018

Employment
DIRECTOR CAPACITY BUILDING

United Way East Ontario

April 2010 to present

Duties:

Currently, I lead a team of managers at United Way Ottawa and provide leadership to the strategic direction and operational management of a variety of neighborhoods safety and revitalization and organizational capacity building project/programs.

  • Manage the portfolio of building social capital in marginalized neighborhoods and support capacity building of the funded agencies in program design, financial management and diversifying their funding base.
  • Develop annual strategic and financial plans and work with other partners to develop a common evaluation framework and shared measurement systems.
  • Provide support to the Community Impact Cabinet and the Board of Directors related to the investment of resources in partnerships, programs and services.
  • Manage relations and partnerships with community stakeholders and other funders.
  • Provide strategic, operational, and management oversight; oversee the building strong neighbourhoods and capacity building budget; make grant allocations, and support managing up to $6m in community investment – from allocation to impact assessment.
  • Work closely with communications and campaign (resource development team) to support community priorities.
  • Assist the marketing and evaluation team to ensure all programs are of high quality and community impact is properly captured and communicated.
  • Other management responsibilities such as hiring/supervising staff, performance appraisal, developing work plans, policies and procedures.

Accomplishments:

As a strong advocate of diversity and inclusion, evolved a partnership of more than 120 organization into a Coalition for overcoming hate and violence in East Ontario. The initiative is called United for All. See United for All media statements here.

As a believer in place-based community development, developed a well thought out, sustainable initiatives that encourage progress and improve conditions for the most marginalized communities such as the Ottawa Neighbourhood Social Capital Forum, the development of the Neighbourhood Equity Index and the Portrait of Ottawa’s Black Community.

Created the vision and path forward for several multi-partner initiatives while utilizing a shared leadership model.

COORDINATOR, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK (CDF)

City of Ottawa/CHRCs Coalition

Sept 2008 - April, 2010

Duties:

  • Spearheaded strategic planning and program policy development based on an in-depth understanding of the community needs and the common goals of the City of Ottawa and the 14 Community Health & Resource Centre.
  • Facilitated the development of a strategic neighbourhoods revitalization approach and successfully managed city-wide implementation of the place-based approach to building strong neighbourhoods.
  • Led a team of 14 community developers to strengthen their community mobilization skills and deliver on the Community Development Framework goals.

Accomplishment:

Developed a community development model and replicated it city-wide. The initiative is called Community Development Framework.

COORDINATOR, NO COMMUNITY LEFT BEHIND (NCLB)

Southeast Ottawa Centre for a Healthy Community (SEOCHC

Aug 2006–Sept 2008

Accomplishments:

  • No Community Left Behind (NCLB): Conducted best practice research, Conceptualized and implemented a crime-prevention-through-social-development initiative called No Community Left Behind.
  • Community Development Framework (CDF): Successfully lobbied and brought funders and other stakeholders on board to replicate the place-based, community engagement approach citywide as the Community Development Framework (CDF).
COMMUNITY DEVELOPER

South-East Ottawa Community Resources Centre - Ottawa

Aug 2004–Sept 2006

PRINCIPAL ADVISOR TO GTZ Germany

IRDP Pakistan

Oct 2000 - Dec 2000

Principal Advisor to GTZ and Government of Pakistan for Pak-German Integrated Rural Development Program in Mardan. Successfully designed and instituted a Post-Project capacity building phase, and prepared a Final Evaluation Report on the 17-years’ long unique rural development project.

Executive Director

Integrated Regional Support Program

Jan 2001 - Dec 2002

Worked with GTZ Germany to evaluate a 17-year long project, provide strategic direction and develop a plan to transition the GTZ and government of Pakistan-funded project to an independent non-for-profit for poverty alleviation and gender development in the most conservative part of the country.

Selected Contribution: 

  • Established and led the organization with multi-sectoral teams of more than 50 staff members. The organization is now known as the Integrated Regional support Program in Mardan, Pakistan.
  • Successfully demonstrated sustainability of the participatory approaches to planning and implementation of micro-level development in rural areas after phasing out of the GTZ project, including the mobilization of rural savings and introduction of micro-credit; the application of cost-effective methods for building rural infrastructure; natural resource development; institution and capacity building; and successful public-private sector partnerships.
  • Executed the strategic plans and policies as established by the Board of Directors and seven community based Regional Development Organizations (RDOs) in the poorest rural communities for financial inclusion, improving basic health, education, basic infrastructure, sanitation and natural resource management.
  • Closely worked with various local government agencies at the district level including Education and Health Departments, and oversaw more than 40 Women Skill Centers, 7 Regional Offices and a Women’s Wing – established to equally engage women in the development work.
  • Guided implementation of four projects (Health, Education, Capacity Building, Water and Sanitation, Information Management) with national (NCHD – National Commission for Human Development, Khushali Bank) and international (UNICEF, GTZ) donors and financial institutions.
  • Headed multi-sectoral teams of more than 50 staff members.
  • Launched innovative projects such as the Community Information System (CIS), Role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for rural development and “Women of Action” event that brought over 700 attendees annually from across the country, and generated up to $500K for the Women Wing program activities.
  • Conceptualized and implemented a unique information management and planning program, to assist communities, Union Councils, District government and donors like UNICEF in developing their short & long terms plans.
Executive Director

Frontier Resource Centre

Aug 2000 - Dec 2000

CHIEF, Human Resources Development

Sarhad Rural Support Program, Peshawar, Pakistan

Aug 1998 - Aug 2000

Assigned by this rural development organization – a replication of AKRSP approach  – with the poverty alleviation mandate to assume overall leadership for community and staff capacity building.

Select Contributions:

  • Provided ongoing supervision, leadership, support and guidance to all staff with relation to their specific roles and relationship to achieve the overall goal to alleviate rural poverty, gender and development and financial inclusion for poorest of the poor through the community-based, participatory approach to development.
  • Worked closely with donors such as Novib, DFID, UNDP and IUCN on capacity building, Natural Resource management and enterprise development initiatives in the Pukhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.
  • Developed tailored training packages for social organizers, NRM staff and enterprise development staff so that they could leverage their respective program activities and together support members of the village organizations in effectively managing their committees, natural resources and their savings and loans.
  • Developed and conducted book-keeping, leadership and management, Gender and Development, and enterprise development training for members of the men and women community organizations.
  • Developed a 360 degree performance appraisal system and HRD policies and procedures.
  • Participated in planning, monitoring and evaluation of the programs and writing grant proposals for funding. The most successful of which was the 3million dollars support from DFID to establish a central Capacity Building Centre where boarding and lodging facilities were provided to community members and staff attending training.
MANAGER, Human Resources Development

Sarhad Rural Support Program (SRSP), Peshawar.

June 1997 - Aug1998

Executive Director

Frontier Resource Centre

Aug 2000 - Dec 2000

Development Consultant

Support agencies working with CIDA and other funders

1998-2002

NATIONAL PROJECT CO-COORDINATOR (Pakistan)

University of Maine/US Fish and Wildlife Services (U.S.A.)

Aug 1999 - Dec 1992

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Programming Skills
Crime Prevention
90%
Capacity Building
90%
Community Safety
93%
Social Service - Poverty Alleviation
82%
Senior Level Management
75%
Language Skills
English
Urdu
Pashtu
Punjabi
Hindko
Arabic
French