Bangladesh

Thomas oversees A&T’s country programs in India and Bangladesh, as well as regional activities in South Asia. Thomas has over two decades of experience in strategy and management across public health and life sciences. Prior to joining A&T, Thomas served as Deputy Director for strategy, planning and management for Tuberculosis and HIV at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he also led an initiative to improve the use of cost effectiveness data in decision making. Thomas started his career as a strategy and management consultant to the life sciences industry.

Zeba ensures technical excellence in the design, implementation, follow up, and analysis of A&T activities and partnerships in Bangladesh. Her previous experience includes working for the BRAC Institute of Global Health and the Micronutrient Initiative in Bangladesh. Early in her career as a medical professional, she performed preventative and clinical services in rural communities and has published several papers on nutrition.

Abdullah has been working with A&T since 2010 and he brings over 15 years of experience in contracts and financial management to the project. In his role with A&T he manages contracts, sub-grants, and procurement, while also supporting field operations and ensuring compliance with Government of Bangladesh policies and regulations. Prior to joining A&T he worked for USC Canada and the Coalition for the Urban Poor.

Mihir is responsible for managing the financial and administration operations for A&T in Bangladesh. Over his more than 25-year career, he has had numerous experiences in preparing financial documents and statements, management payroll and tax processes, and providing overall financial monitoring of projects. Prior to joining A&T, Mihir worked for more than 16 years with John Snow Inc. (JSI) Bangladesh, on a USAID-funded family planning logistics management project.

Tohidul has been working with A&T in Bangladesh for over seven years. Before joining A&T he worked as an accounting and finance officer at Technohaven Company Ltd. In his current role he provides financial, logistical, and administrative support to the project, while also managing the front desk and supporting staff needs. He assists the senior finance and operations managers in documentation and reporting.

Rowshan Joined A&T in May 2019 and is responsible for managing the day-to-day execution and monitoring of A&T’s urban MIYCN program. He is a public health nutritionist with 9 years of experience on the operationalization of nutrition services. Prior to joining A&T, he worked with UNICEF, WFP, ACF, and Muslim Aid. He has extensive experience in urban areas, in particular his work on the “Institutionalization of Urban Nutrition Reporting System through DHIS2 in Urban (Dhaka and Sylhet City Corporations)” project in Bangladesh.

Idris joined A&T in January 2019 and brings 25 years of experience in program management. Prior to joining A&T, he worked for the Divisional Program of Plan International Bangladesh. He has also managed projects for MaMoni and the Rural Urban Child Migration Migration Project (Save the Children), and the Community Health and Nutrition, Food Security, and Livelihood Projects (Concern Worldwide Bangladesh).

Gourob has a strong professional and academic background in qualitative research. For over seven years he has been engaged with different global development and research organizations, including BRAC, BBC Media Action, and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b). He has professional experience in activity and outcome monitoring of development projects, as well as experience in public health, communication, and social and market research. Gourob joined A&T in December 2018.

Saydur has over 16 years of work experience public health nutrition, maternal and child health, and health systems strengthening programs in Bangladesh. His previous experience includes working on programmatic and operational support for health and nutrition projects for the World Health Organization and FHI 360. In his current position, he serves as a key liaison and manages relationships between A&), the offices of the Government of Bangladesh, development partners, and other stakeholders. He works to ensure that A&T is an effective technical assistance provider in Bangladesh.

Zakaria Chowdhury joined FHI Solutions in June 2023. He brings more than 12 years of experience in nation-wide nutrition program implementation, planning, monitoring, and surveillance. Prior to joining FHI Solutions, he worked as a Technical Manager at Alive & Thrive. He also worked in the Bangladesh National Nutrition Council (BNNC), National Nutrition Services (NNS), NIPU, A&T Bangladesh phase-2, and FHI360’s FANTA II & III projects. Zakaria provides strategic and technical support for the community-based MIYCN project and supervises six Upazila TA Coordinators. Additionally, he provides technical assistance and follow-up with various government offices, including the Department of Local Government, regarding MIYCN implementation in testing sites. Zakaria holds a Master of Public Health.

Zubair Shams joined FHI Solutions in June 2023. He is responsible for managing and supporting the design of all MLE activities under A&T’s community-based engagement (CBE) activity. He supports the project staff, UNICEF and GOB officials to strategically make data driven decisions in implementation research. He brings more than 14 years of experience in program monitoring, evaluation, research and learning activities. He has professional experience in community nutrition, maternal and newborn health, health system strengthening, HIV/AIDS and health MIS. Prior to joining FHI Solutions, he worked as a Technical Advisor-Research and Learning with Save the Children under the USAID’s MaMoni MNCSP. Earlier, he worked with German Development Cooperation (GIZ), Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)/Belgium. Zubair had several journal articles on community nutrition and community health workers. Zubair has completed a Master of Science in Global Health from Edinburgh, UK, and a Master of Public Health from James P. Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University.