Associate’s of Cohort 11 - Our Future Leaders

Baloch, Mohammad Arif  Irfanullah, Sahibzada  Khan, Ahmad Kumar, Mukesh  Qin, Liyi Sarah

Baloch, Mohammad Arif

Assistant Director, Planning and Development

Balochistan Coastal Development Authority, Gwadar

Mohammad Arif Baloch is working as Assistant Director, Planning and Development, with the Balochistan Coastal Development Authority (BCDA), Gwadar. His current responsibilities include development and execution of development projects in BCDA.  Before joining BCDA, Mr Baloch served as Tehsil Officer in the District Government in Gwadar. He has also worked as a Research Officer with the Planning and Development Department, Quetta. Here he was responsible for planning, appraisal, implementation and monitoring of various projects. Mr Baloch has attended several national training courses on development economics. He holds a Masters degree in Economics from the University of Balochistan, Quetta. Mr Baloch is interested in the development of coastal communities, health, education, environment and gender.

Back to Top

Irfanullah, Sahibzada

Research and Technical Officer

Farm Forestry Project, Peshawar 

Sahabzada Irfanullah is Research and Technical Officer at the Farm Forestry Project. He is responsible for providing technical support to the project field teams and project partners in preparation of village development plans, general forestry activities and rehabilitation of degraded lands through innovative approaches. He is also responsible for coordinating the activities of project partners and research institutions in the establishment of sustainable farm forestry practices for poverty alleviation and livelihood improvement. Before the Farm Forestry Project, Mr Irfanullah worked for an ICIMOD based project in the Hindukush-Himalayan region of Pakistan. He worked closely with mountain communities for sustainable natural resource management. He has experience in implementation of project activities and collaborating with line agencies to make joint efforts for the benefit of poor communities through improved management of natural resources. Mr Irfanullah is a forester by training, with a Masters degree in Forestry and specialization in Watershed Management from the Pakistan Forest Institute, Peshawar, Pakistan.

Back to Top

Khan, Ahmad

Senior Conservation Officer

World Wide Fund for Nature – Pakistan (WWF – Pakistan), Peshawar

Ahmad Khan is Senior Conservation Officer with WWF – Pakistan, Peshawar region. He is responsible for the crane and flamingo conservation project and the project on conservation of chilgoza forests and endangered Suleiman markhor in the Suleiman Mountain Range, and also coordinates the activities of the Protected Areas Management Project. Before joining WWF – Pakistan, Mr Khan worked as Range Officer with the NWFP Wildlife Department and volunteered as Executive Director of the Holistic Understanding for Justified Research and Action (HUJRA). During all this time he coordinated the activities of Care International in Pakistan and Afghanistan on a voluntary basis. Over the past few years, Mr Khan has developed his skills from a simple wildlife manager with academic training as forester to a skilled conservationist. He has successful projects like community-based conservation of the snow leopard to his name. Mr Khan holds Masters degree in Conservation Biology and Sustainable Development from the University of Wisonsin in Madison, USA.

Back to Top

Kumar, Mukesh

Manager, Cluster Development

Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority (SMEDA), Karachi

Mukesh Kumar is Manager, Cluster Development at SMEDA in Lahore. Currently his responsibilities are studying, assessing and analyzing various industrial as well as agricultural clusters and developing and implementing various projects for sustainable growth. Before joining SMEDA in Lahore, Mr Kumar was Manager BDS at SMEDA in Karachi. There he was also involved in sales and marketing of computer hardware and software for several years during which he introduced online product sales. Mr Kumar is also a member of the Management Association of Pakistan and the Pakistan Engineering Council. His main hobbies are reading business journals and history.

Back to Top

Qin, Liyi Sarah

China Programme Officer

IUCN - The World Conservation Union

Sarah Qin Liyi is China Programme Officer with IUCN. She is responsible for programme and project development and also liaises between members, partners and the various IUCN country, regional and global programs. She is currently working on water governance issues in southwest China. Before joining IUCN, Ms Qin worked for the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) as Administrative Officer, External Relations for the Dean of the School of Environment, Resources and Development. She has also had two years’ work experience in the private sector. Ms Qin holds a Masters in Asia-Pacific Policy Studies (Technology and Environment) from the University of British Columbia and an MBA in Management of Technology from AIT. Among her interests is the study of renewable energy.

Back to Top