Board of Directors

Occupation: Retired Civil servant and Economist

Dr. Hafiz A. Pasha is a retired civil servant and a leading economist with a PhD in Economics from Stanford University, and an M.A in Economics from University of Cambridge, U.K. He has held many notable national and international appointments including Advisor to the Prime Minister, Federal Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs, Founder Chairman of the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund, Vice Chancellor/President of University of Karachi, Director of the Institute of Business Administration, Assistant Administrator at the UNDP, Regional Director of Bureau for Asia and the Pacific for the UNDP, Member Board of Governors for the World Bank, and Managing Director at the Institute of Public Policy (IPP).

Occupation: Gender Specialist

Ms. Rabia Khan is a lawyer by profession and also holds a Masters Degree in Public Policy and Management from the Carnegie Mellon University, USA. Ms. Khan has worked in the field of Gender and Development for many years with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and has also worked with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on Sustainable Development. Ms. Khan is based in Karachi, she retired from Development Consulting in 2018 and currently co-manages an organic farm which includes production, marketing, and sales of organic produce. Since 2004 Ms. Khan has served as Director of Kaarvan Crafts Foundation, Lahore.

Occupation: Chief Executive Officer Abacus Consulting

Ms. Fatima Asad Khan is an integral member of the top leadership at Abacus Consulting. Ms. Khan’s professional experience of over 24 years embodies thought leadership and delivering progressive solutions in Corporate Governance, Digital Transformation, Strategic Change, Human Capital Management, Enterprise Technology Solutions, and project leadership across multiple sectors and industries. An MBA graduate from LUMS, she started her career with Coopers & Lybrand International and then PricewaterhouseCoopers. Her leadership journey includes serving on various Boards as an independent director such as Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Faysal Bank, Kashf Foundation, Bata Pakistan, Abacus Consulting Technology (Private) Limited, Abacus ELS Pvt limited, Abacus Consulting (Private) Limited, Kaarvan Crafts Foundation and is also a member of YPO International and YPO Indus Chapter. She holds a Corporate Director Certification from Harvard Business School and is a member of the Harvard Corporate Directors, Diversity and Inclusion Hub Leadership Council, and Women Executives on Boards Ms. Fatima Asad Khan forums.

Occupation: Chartered Accountant

Mr. Arif Masud Mirza is a Chartered Accountant by profession and the Regional Head of Policy for ACCA MENASA (Middle East North Africa and South Asia) of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants since 2014. Mr. Masud has headed senior positions at various organizations; he was the Country Head of ACCA Pakistan of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and Manager Finance & company secretary at First International Investment Bank Ltd. He has rich experience as a technical advisor with Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) South Asia Advisory, Group, and Multi-stakeholder Steering Committee looking at initiating UN SDGs in companies, Technical advisor on the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) Professional Accountancy Organization Development Committee (PAODC), Editorial Board of Accountancy Futures ACCA’s international journal for business leaders, Editor of Policy and Insights Commentary ACCA’s the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia MENASA e-journal.

Occupation: Sustainability Expert

Ali Hassan Habib, a leading environmental professional and entrepreneur, holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences from Punjab University, Pakistan, and a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA.Currently, Mr. Habib serves as CEO of SAMA^Verte and Managing Partner of HIMA^Verte, renowned sustainability consulting firms in Pakistan. His impactful initiatives include spearheading the CLASP Pakistan Project and Bridge ESG, dedicated to sustainability and energy efficiency. Notably, he served as CEO of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) from 1995 to 2014 and contributed significantly to multiple sustainability-focused organizations like the Adventure Foundation and Aziz Jehan Begum Trust for the Blind. His affiliations with government bodies and ministries, such as the Prime Minister’s Tourism Board and Punjab Chief Minister’s Climate Change and Environmental Task Force, signify his dedication to sustainability causes.
Mr. Habib’s commendable efforts in sustainability have been acknowledged through prestigious awards like the UNIDO Project Finance Advisory Network (PFAN) award in 2018 and the World Bank global award for his work on energy efficiency for the Punjab Government in 2018.

Occupation: Infectious Diseases Expert

Dr. Rumina Hasan (MBBS, PhD, FRCPath), a distinguished professional, completed her medical and postgraduate education at London University, UK. She currently holds the Abdulaziz Hussainali Shariff Professorship at Aga Khan University, Karachi, focusing on infectious diseases, tuberculosis, and antimicrobial resistance.Her tenure as Chairperson of the Department of Pathology and Microbiology at AKU (2004-2010) saw her lead numerous Biosafety Workshops and Seminars, demonstrating her commitment to enhancing healthcare worker and researcher awareness in Pakistan.
Dr. Hasan’s influence extends to national and international committees, including the New Diagnostic Working Group and the Global Laboratory Initiative under Stop-TB Partnership and WHO, and the Regional Green Light Committee for Management of Multidrug-resistant TB in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region. She is a founding member and former president of the Pakistan Biological Safety Association (PBSA).

Fintech Expert

Ms Sadia Khan is a seasoned fintech executive with over twenty years of industry experience, 12 of which have been in C-suite roles with the last appointment being CEO of AutoSoft Dynamics. She has led several successful core banking and lending system migrations (Faysal Bank, Al Baraka Bank, Sindh Bank, PMRC), mobile wallet implementations (Finca Microfinance Bank, Allied Bank), and treasury system installations (Bank of Punjab, National Bank of Pakistan, Askari Bank). Before joining AutoSoft Ms. Khan worked with Deutsche Bank New York, NY. Ms. Khan completed her Bachelors in Computer Science from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. She is currently also a member of the Board of Naseeb Online Services (Pvt.) Ltd.

Occupation: Media Figure and Educationist

Navid Shahzad, a prominent figure in Pakistani media, holds a Master’s in English Literature from Government College, Lahore, and a Bachelor’s in English Literature, Philosophy, and Psychology from Kinnaird College for Women, Lahore. Beyond her media contributions, Ms. Shahzad actively engages in social causes and education, collaborating with various NGOs focused on women’s rights and education. Her involvement as the Dean of the School of Liberal Arts at Beaconhouse National University Lahore and as a visiting faculty member at LUMS and Lahore College for Women showcases her commitment to education.
Presently, she serves as the Director of the Resource Centre at Lahore Grammar School. Her remarkable contributions to the Pakistan Media Industry have been honored with several prestigious awards, including The Fatima Jinnah Award for Performing Arts awarded by the Government of Punjab in 2014, the Pride of Performance bestowed by the President of Pakistan in 2003, a Gold Medal for contribution to Performing Arts by the Ministry of Information Pakistan in 1989, and a Silver Medal for Contribution to the Performing Arts awarded by Pakistan Television, Ministry of Information Pakistan in 1977. These accolades underscore her significant impact on the performing arts landscape and her enduring commitment to the media industry in Pakistan.

Occupation: Former President & Chief Executive Officer at United Bank Limited

Mr. Shahzad G. Dada is a highly regarded banking and capital markets professional with over 30 years of experience at renowned financial institutions in the United States, Middle East, and Pakistan. Most recently, he served as the President and CEO of United Bank Limited (UBL), where he led the bank to record profitability in 2021, 2022, and the first half of 2023, driving growth across core businesses.

Prior to his role at UBL, Shahzad was the CEO of Standard Chartered Bank (Pakistan) Ltd and a member of its Africa and Middle East regional management team. He also served as the CEO and Managing Director of Barclays Pakistan and chaired the Regional Transaction Services Steering Committee for Asia, India, UAE, and Pakistan.
Shahzad began his career at Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. in New York, where he spent over 15 years in various roles, ultimately becoming the Managing Director of the Mergers, Acquisitions, and Corporate Advisory Group. He returned to Pakistan in 2005 as the Managing Director and Chief Country Officer of Deutsche Bank AG Pakistan.

Shahzad has held numerous non-executive positions, including President of the Overseas Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI), Chairman of the Pakistan Mercantile Exchange, Chairman of the Pakistan Banks Association, Independent Director of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), and member of the Board of Directors of Sui Southern Gas Company Limited, UBL UK, and the Board of Governors of the British Overseas School.

Shahzad has been actively involved with several esteemed charitable, educational, and healthcare organizations. He serves as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Developments in Literacy and is a Director on the Board of the Karachi Education Initiative. Additionally, he holds the position of Director at the National Institute of Banking and Finance (NIBAF) and is a council member of the Institute of Bankers Pakistan (IBP).

Occupation: Former Chairperson of the National Commission on the Status of Women

Khawar Mumtaz is currently the Chairperson of the National Commission on the Status of Women. As an active member of the women’s rights movement, she has worked with the leading women’s rights organization Shirkat Gah, where she also served as CEO. Her diverse experience includes university teaching and journalism. Mumtaz holds a Master of Arts in International Relations and a diploma in French. Her areas of expertise encompass women and development, political participation, economic empowerment, environment, and reproductive health and rights. She has authored numerous research reports and books, including the co-authored work “Two Steps Forward, One Step Back?” with Farida Shaheed, for which she received the Prime Minister’s award for Women of Pakistan in 1989. Additionally, she has been honored with the civil award Sitara-e-Imtiaz for her contributions to promoting women’s rights.