GETTING TO KNOW ROHULLAH OSMANI

Rohullah is an international development expert, specifically in institutional reform, regional trade, local and workforce capacity development, and medium/large scale system changes in developing and fragile states.

In his role with the Economic Growth Division, he provides technical leadership and solutions to private sector-led development, regional trade, workforce, youth and local capacity development. He also leads Economic Growth’s business development coordination in Eurasia and Middle East regions.

Please tell us about your area(s) of expertise.

My role as Senior Technical Advisor is to provide guidance, technical support and work with donors including U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the World Bank, Millennium Challenge Corporation and Development Finance Institutions.

I also design and implement approaches that focus on inclusive economic growth, enterprise development, domestic resource mobilization and youth and women empowerment.

My work also focuses on building new partnerships with key players including local and national governments, private sectors, non-governmental agencies and community-based organizations.

I am a lead coordinator for Eurasia and Middle East and North Africa regions in Economic Growth Division.

Finally, I leverage my two decades of international development experience in over 25 countries by offering innovative and best-fit solutions to challenge development contexts. My experience and suggestions allow Creative to build resilient economies, effective institutions and create sustainable jobs for youth, women and marginalized populations.

Do you have an accomplishment, programmatic result or activity that you are particularly proud of?

During my two decades of international development work, I am particularly proud of being co-chair of a group called Technical Assistance for Capacity Development. While co-chair, the team’s hard work resulted in producing policy framework on the NEW DEAL under the International Dialogue for Peace Building and State Building for Fragile States in 2011 and 2012. The framework that we produced has been used by over 20 member countries in Asia and Africa while the countries build road to resilience. Also, as co-chair of one of the Dialogue’s working groups, I piloted development models in countries like Afghanistan, while working closely with donors such as USAID, the World Bank and United Nations Development Programme, among others.

• EXPERTISE:

  Institutional reform, regional trade, workforce development, investment promotion, and democracy and governance in fragile states.

• DISCIPLINES:

  Agricultural Development, Economics, Policy Reform

• EDUCATION:

  Master of International Public Policy, The Johns Hopkins University, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) | Bachelor of Business Administration, Preston University

• DEVELOPMENT EXPERIENCE:

  Twenty years of international development experience in over 25 countries, specifically in institutional reform for socioeconomic development, regional trade and investment, workforce development and governance reform in fragile states. Proven track record of managing medium to large-size donor programs with budget of over $1 billion across multiple economic growth sectors and leading over 450 cross-functional mid-to-senior-level national and international staff. In Asia, led efforts to connect countries like Afghanistan, India, Nepal, Singapore, Japan and South Korea in building partnerships under South-South Cooperation framework to exchange resources, technology and knowledge.

  Example of projects implemented are: USAID’s Afghan Civil Service Support (ACSS) Project ($218.5 million), World Bank’s Capacity Building for Result Framework (CBR) ($350 million), World Bank’s Management Capacity Program (MCP) ($35 million) and UNDP’s Institutional Building Program (NIBP) ($115 million).

• LANGUAGES:

  English, Dari/Farsi, Pashto, Urdu/Hindi and Basic Arabic

• PUBLICATIONS: 
  • Chabahar Port, A Pathway to South-Central Asian Integration and Afghanistan’s Self-Reliance, by Creative Insights
  • Making Afghanistan Self-Reliant: Investing in Mining and Infrastructure, Afghanistan’s lifeline for Prosperity, by Foreign Affairs Magazine
  • The End of the Line: How Lack of Transportation Infrastructure Can Prevent Economic Development, by The SAIS Review of International Affairs, Johns Hopkins University
  • Chabahar Port: A Win for South Asia, by Foreign Policy Magazine
  • Rebuilding State Institutions, Post-Conflict: Reform Experiences from Afghanistan and Somalia, by The SAIS Review of International Affairs, Johns Hopkins University
  • A Rare Success Story in Afghanistan: Education, by The Diplomat Magazine
  • TAPI Gas Pipeline: Are Sino-U.S. Relations a Zero-sum Game? by Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst
  • Is the Iran Nuclear Deal a Threat or an Opportunity? by Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst​