Mr. Mohammad Tahseen is the founding Director of South Asia Partnership Pakistan, a leading national NGO in Pakistan working for social, political and economic empowerment of the weakest, especially peasants, women and religious minorities. He holds a master’s degree in public administration with specialization in Research Methodology and Techniques from University of the Punjab, Lahore - Pakistan.

Mr. Tahseen is known for his grass roots advocacy work in civil society circles of South Asia and is a strong believer of civil liberties. He has been supporting efforts of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) for the last many years. Mr. Tahseen is also a founder member and First Secretary of Pakistan NGO Forum, has served as the Chairperson of the Building Bridges Project of Forum International de Montreal (FIM and has also served as Chairperson of "Pakistan National Committee (PNC) of IUCN.

Mr. Tahseen plays a pivotal role in bringing trade unions, media organizations, peasants, and civil society organizations together at national forums to struggle for the common cause. He is serving as National Coordinator of the Pakistan Civil Society Forum (PCSF) and a Convenor Pakistan India People's Forum for Peace and Democracy (PIPFPD) for the last two years. Mr. Tahseen has been awarded the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Presidential Award for Human Rights in recognition of his efforts for peace in the region.

Mr. Ghufran Mr. Abdul Ghufran Memon serves as Secretary Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division, Cabinet Secretariat, Government of Pakistan. He is the nominee director of Government of Pakistan and joined PPAF as director in January 2023. He holds a Master’s degree in accounting and finance from Cardiff University, UK. He joined the civil service of Pakistan in 1987 and has been working in various ministries in the Federal and Provincial Governments.

Dr. Muhammad Suleman Shaikh is a medical professional and social development advocate. He graduated from Liaquat Medical College and completed his postgraduate education at K.E. Medical College and Karachi University. He has authored books and articles on social development, poverty, and society.

Dr. Shaikh entered the national arena of social development in 1993 to head the Strengthening Participatory Organization (SPO). He is the founding Board of Directors of Pakistan Poverty Fund and has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Pakistan Centre for Philanthropy (PCP). He also participated in the formation of the Sindh Rural Support Organization and served as its First Chief Executive Officer (Honorary) until 2005.

Dr. Shaikh has authored several books in Sindhi and articles on social development, community awareness, poverty, and society. His literary works include short stories, and publications on bacteriology and public health, travel, and NGO movement in South Asia. He has also contributed many articles on the sociology of Sindh in leading Sindhi newspapers and periodicals. He also compered current affairs programs on Pakistan Television and has made radio talks on health and education.

Currently, Dr. Shaikh is the Secretary of the Board of Trustees at SZABIST, member of the PPAF Board of Directors, STEDA, and PPHI Sindh, and Chairperson of the Board of Governors at Public School Gadap in Karachi.

A sociologist by training Ms. Farida Shaheed is the Executive Director of Pakistan’s leading women’s rights organization, Shirkat Gah. With more than 30 years’ experience of working in Pakistan as well as in the region and internationally, Ms. Shaheed has been an independent expert/consultant to the government of Pakistan since 1980 as well as to numerous U.N. and international and bi-lateral development agencies. She has been a frequent resource person on issues related to women’s issues in Pakistan, including at the Pakistan Staff College, National Institute of Management (previously NIPA) and Defence College as well as UN events.

A key member of the drafting committees for Pakistan’s National Report for Beijing and 2002 National Plan for Action and National Policy on Women’s Development and Empowerment, Ms. Shaheed served as a member of the Executive Committee of the NCSW and committees on law and research. She also serves on various government committees such as the Gender MIS and other research advisory committees of the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women and Gender Mainstreaming of the Women Development Department, Punjab. With a reputation for rigorous research, Ms. Shaheed is widely published on topics relating to development, participation, and institutional strengthening from an inclusion perspective.

Most recently, she served on the UN Women’s Advisory Group for the World’s Women Report 2018 (2016-2018). Appointed as the first UN Independent Expert in the field of cultural rights in 2009, she continued as a Special Rapporteur on the same issue until October 2015. Ms. Shaheed is also a recipient of several national and international human rights awards.

Ms. Shabina Ayaz is a dynamic and accomplished women's rights activist who currently serves as Resident Director of the Aurat Foundation's Peshawar office. With a diverse background in managing outreach-based programs on Advocacy and Action, she has mobilized and capacitated a vast network of Citizen's Alliance/Network for the social and political emancipation of women and marginalized groups. Ms. Ayaz's exceptional lobbying, coordination, and communication skills have enabled her to effectively engage in human rights advocacy and work with parliamentary bodies and other institutional mechanisms meant for legislation.

With her international exposure, Ms. Ayaz brings a global perspective to her work, enabling her to localize global charters, conventions, and declarations (CEDAW, CRC, Beijing +, ICCPR, UDHR, etc.) and translate them into local actions through organizational policies, management, and the reproduction and repackaging of knowledge. Ms. Ayaz's previous experience in journalism has added value to her political and social analysis skills. She has served as a member of the Provincial Commission on the Status of Women and is currently a member of the Amir Ahmad Siddiqi Award. With her blend of professional experience and personal commitment, Ms. Ayaz continues to make a significant impact in promoting the social and political empowerment of women and marginalized groups in Pakistan.

Ms. Mahtab Akbar Rashdi is a highly accomplished educationist and bureaucrat from Pakistan. Her academic credentials include Masters in International Relations from the University of Massachusetts as a Fulbright Scholar.

Ms. Rashdi has served as the Chairperson of the International Relations Department at the University of Sindh in Jamshoro, the Director of the Institute of Sindhology and Regional Director of the University Grants Commission at Jamshoro. In 1988, the Sindh Government acquired her services, and she went on to hold several key positions within the government, including Secretary Culture & Tourism, Youth Affairs & Sports, Social Welfare and Women Development, Education, Information, and Interprovincial Coordination. Ms. Rashdi's leadership and contributions were highly appreciated in government circles and by the general public, and she was conferred with numerous national and international awards, including the "Pride of Performance" award by the President of Pakistan.

Apart from her bureaucratic career, Rashdi is actively associated with various social organizations and forums. She is a director on the board of HUM Television Ltd., National Academy of Performing Arts, Green Star Social Marketing, President of Sindh Graduates Association, Women Branch, Chairperson of Family Planning Association of Pakistan, Chairperson of IPPF South Asia Region Executive Council and Treasure of IPPF (International Planned Parenthood), Trustee of Parveen Shakir Trust, and Member on the Advisory Board of Institute Of Sindhiology. Ms. Rashdi has also authored a book on Indo-Pak relations, contributes articles to various leading journals, and has presented several popular TV talk shows. She strongly believes in economic empowerment for women and has taken initiatives to promote awareness and identify business opportunities for women.

Dr. Bashir-Ur-Rehman Kant has over 48 years of experience of serving in various capacities in the health, allied government, academic, national, international and government sectors of Azad Jammu & Kashmir-AJ&K. He attained his degree in medicine from King Edward Medical College-Lahore and has received medals in the subjects of Pathology and Pharmacology. Additionally, he is a qualified MCPS & FCPS from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan.

Dr. Kant possesses a vast professional and administrative experience in project management while working with KFW-Health Infrastructure Programme, Asian Development Bank, Multisectoral Health Rehabilitation Project, World Bank Sponsored Primary Health Care Project, and UNFPA reproductive health project. He has also supervised several projects in the post-earthquake scenario, including the Australian Medical Mission, 212 Mobile American Surgical Hospital, South Korean Medical Mission, Cuban Medical Mission, and Canadian Medical Mission.

Dr. Kant has managed high-budget projects of UN-WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, US-AID, MSF & Mercy Corps for providing relief to earthquake affected communities and supporting regular health systems.

Mr. Sher Jehan Mir is an accomplished banker, having served as Chief Executive and Chief Advisor at Karakoram Cooperative Bank in Gilgit-Baltistan, where he played a pivotal role in its growth and sustainability. He has also served in the development sector and held the position of Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan in the interim setup from December 2014 to June 2015. Mr. Mir is currently a successful entrepreneur in the oil and gas sector.

Mr. Mahfooz Ali Khan’s diverse career spans over 38 years, He started his career as a journalist before joining the Provincial Civil Service in 1977. He served in Education, Planning, and Home Departments of the Government of Balochistan and later joined Civil Superior Services of Pakistan.

Working with the Provincial, Federal Governments, Authorities, and Autonomous Bodies, including in the telecommunication, finance, and accounts offices. Mr. Khan has served on key positions of Finance Secretary and Accountant General.

As Secretary Finance, Government of Balochistan, he played a crucial role in increasing provincial Tax and non-Tax revenue, and besides part of three NFCs, facilitated in finalizing the historical 7th National Finance Commission Award for the Province. While serving as Head of Audit Office, he planned and supervised audits of all provincial government departments. He also streamlined Peace Time Accounting Procedure of Garrison deployed in Balochistan while serving as Controller Military Accounts.

Mr. Salman Ahmad holds MBA (Finance) and PGT (I.T.) degrees. He joined PPAF in January 2023 as Company Secretary / Head of Legal & Corporate Affairs. His professional career comprises over 20 years of extensive experience and cross functional exposure in the field of Finance & Accounts, Financial Management & Analyses, Audit, Taxation, Companies’ Secretarial & Corporate Affairs, Administration, Human Resources, and Operations support roles.

Prior to joining PPAF he was working in the same role with Quaid-e-Azam Solar Power Limited, Government of Punjab, and has served as Director (F&A)/Secretary of the Board in the Government of Pakistan’s Benazir Income Support Program.

Mr. Ahmad, has worked in the South Punjab Forest Company, Government of the Punjab, as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Company Secretary, Director (Finance) & Company Secretary with Punjab Board of Investment & Trade (PBIT). He has a been the Head of Finance/CFO and Company Secretary at The Pakistan Credit Rating Agency Limited (PACRA), and has also remained engaged in supervisory role in a leading Chartered Accountants firm.

Mr. Nadir Gul Barech is currently working as the Chief Executive Officer for Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF). He holds over 28 years of professional experience in leadership at strategic and operational levels in numerous national and international organizations regarding working in social and economic development. He led multi-million-dollar development programs in relation to diverse themes of pro- poor developmental programs in Balochistan as well as at National level.

Before joining PPAF he served as the CEO of the Balochistan Rural Support Program (BRSP). He was responsible for transforming BRSP into a leading institution addressing issues of poverty and community empowerment in the area. Under his leadership BRSP became a leading stakeholder in the region, addressing complex developmental issues and creating a sustainable approach. In addition, he has worked as Head IUCN Balochistan, then he joined UNFPA as a Technical Advisor/National Coordinator. He has also worked as a Provincial Program Officer, in Balochistan under the same head of UNFPA. He further served as a Deputy Zonal Director/ Director Field, Balochistan for Family Planning Association of Pakistan (FPAP). He also worked as Deputy Director Planning, PHED.

Mr. Nadir Gul is also accredited with various publications through prestigious organizations on different themes such as sustainable development and conservative strategy processes. In recognition of his services, Mr. Nadir Gul received various awards and honors, some of which include the 7th FPCCI (2019) achievement gold medal award in recognition of outstanding performance in socio-economic development in Pakistan, AARDO (2012) for best performance in rural development in Pakistan. On top of this, he has participated in various television and radio segments, advocating on prevailing social and economic issues.

Mr. Nadir Gul has also served as Honorary Lecturer at University Law College, Quetta, where he delivered lectures on various subjects to students of postgraduate classes of LLB. He holds a Master’s in International Relations and Sociology from Balochistan University.

Mr. Abdul Rehman is currently working as the Chief HR, Administration & Procurement for Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF). He holds over 18 years of professional experience in strategic and operational management in core HR; Administration, Procurement, Financial management, Logistics, and supply chain areas in leading regional development sector organization in Pakistan.

He led and developed the annual procurement plans of the multi donor projects and managed the procurement, grants and financial management portfolios of The World Bank, European Union, KfW Development, Italian Development Corporation, GIZ, DFID, IFAD, USAID, Global fund, Canadian, GoP and other UN Agencies. He has extensive experience of design, development, and implementation of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems and organizational policy manuals. He remained involved in capacity building of community institutions including facilitation in reviewing and developing the procurement & logistics systems, procurement guidelines/manuals and processes to make them able to utilize the programme’s funds for the purpose intended in a transparent manner.

Before joining PPAF he served as the General Manager-Human Resource Management, Procurement & Contract Management, Admin & Logistics of the Balochistan Rural Support Program (BRSP).

Mr. Abdul Rehman holds a master’s degree in business administration from BALOCHISTAN University of Information Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences (BUITEMS) and in International Relations from University of Balochistan along with the certifications on HR, Financial management, procurement, and Corporate Governance from LUMS and IBA Pakistan.

Mr. Syed Naeem Abbas has joined The Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) as a Chief Internal Auditor in May 2023. He is an FCCA, ACA (ICAEW) CPA & UAECA. Competent and result driven professional with 17 years of rich experience and competencies in Auditing and Financial Advisory Services in working with, Public and Private sector organizations, top 10 Audit firms in Pakistan and UAE.

Mr. Naeem is an Alumni of KPMG Taseer Hadi & Co Chartered Accountants. Being a versatile professional with a proven track record in establishing and leading internal audit departments in various organizations. He has expertise in Risk Based Internal Auditing, possess hands-on experience of, analysing business and financial risks, conducting operational and support service departments audits, performance audits, business process reviews, corporate governance compliance audits and financial due diligence. He has a strong background in implementing ERP systems and streamlining operations.

Before joining The PPAF he worked as a Chief Internal Auditor for The Urban Unit Planning & Development Borad Gov’t of the Punjab, Head of Internal Audit for Sialkot International Airport Limited, Head of Internal Audit for South Punjab Forest Company, Manager Internal Audit for Emirates Al Rawabi Group in UAE, to name a few.

Ms. Samar Ihsan is a distinguished senior civil servant with over 28 years of experience in government service. Ms Ihsan is a highly educated professional holding an MSc in Development Studies from the University of Reading, UK, and an MA in French from the National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad.

Presently, she is serving as Additional Secretary at the Ministry of Economic Affairs, where she oversees the Asian Development Bank wing, as well as the bilateral portfolio of Paris Club countries, Middle East, Central Asian, Africa, South East Asian, including Japan. Prior to this, she held various senior positions in the Ministry of Commerce, the former Ministry of Water & Power (now Ministry of Energy), Cabinet Division, and Ministry of Women Development. Her extensive experience also includes working for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as a Gender Specialist and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as Social Counsellor.

Ms Ihsan has represented Pakistan at various international conferences, seminars, and meetings, presenting papers and reports. She has exceptional expertise and experience in international development issues and economic diplomacy, which has led her to lead Pakistani delegations in negotiating several donor-funded projects, as well as WTO trade agreements. She has also served on a number of boards as an ex-officio member.