Our Team
MADE in Europe was set up by a group of people who had a vision of bringing people together to work hand in hand to acheive social justice and peace in our increasingly troubled world. Most of our team are volunteers sharing their skills and experience to develop the organisation.
Our Board
Khalid Sofi, Chairman
Khalid is the managing partner of Johns & Saggar Solicitors based in London. He was formerly employed in the litigation department in the Commission for Racial Equality in London and has represented clients at the European Court of Human Rights. His clients include NGOs to whom he provides advice on strategic planning, governance, risk management and employment issues. He is a senior member of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) and served as the Chair of the MCB Legal Affairs Committee for 4 years. He was invited to provide testimony to the House of Lords Select Committee for Religious Offences and the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee regarding “stop and search” powers and “terrorism and community relations."
Dato' Mohamed Iqbal, Board Director
Dato’ Mohamed Iqbal has a PhD in Management from USA and is presently Group Executive Director of Farlim Group and Managing Director of Bandar Subang Sdn Bhd in Malaysia. He serves as Secretary-General of the ASEAN Business Forum and Secretary of Malaysia-Japan Economic Association and recently, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia-Pacific has appointed him as a member of its Business Advisory Council. He has been extensively involved in youth work and was one of the founding members of the Federation of Islamic Student Societies (FOSIS) in the UK and received an honorary title in Malaysia for his service to the youth movement.
Dr N.S. Nassar, Board Director
Dr Nassar has extensive experience in the design, build, and deployment of IT infrastructures and solutions. He project managed a number of very large IT projects in the Middle-East. He obtained his Ph.D. in Digital Communication Engineering from Imperial College, London University and MBA from Middlesex University. Dr. Nassar is a member of the Institute of Directories and Institute of Engineering & Technology. He has been awarded the CISM (Certified Information Security Manager) and CISA (certified Information System Auditor) from the Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) in the US.
Faaria Ahmad, Board Director
Faaria has an LLM in Law, Development and Governance from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. She has experience of working within the development sector in capacity building, bid-writing and policy research. She has also worked with asylum seekers within a legal capacity. Her voluntary experience includes working with Muslim Human Rights organisations, NGOs and Islamic youth organisations.
Khadijah Elshayyal, Board Director
Khadijah is a researcher in British Muslim history and is currently completing her PhD at University of London in that subject. She has a Masters in Legal & Political Theory from UCL. She has a special interest in community welfare and charity work, particularly work with young people and students. She has over a decade's experience in voluntary work and has held leadership positions in the Islamic Society of Britain.
Our Staff
Saif Ahmad, CEO
Saif is the founder and former CEO of Faith Regen Foundation, the first Muslim-led multi-faith community regeneration agency in the UK. In 2006 he was head hunted for the post of CEO at Muslim Aid, a UK-based humanitarian and development agency working in over 70 countries worldwide. Over 3 years he led a programme of organisational development doubling its income and establishing the organisation as a key global player in the development sector. He initiated a ground-breaking cross-faith partnership with US-based Methodist organisation UMCOR which was recognised by the Prime Minister Gordon Brown MP at the UN Interfaith Conference in New York.
Sarah Atkinson, Director of Operations
Sarah has a BA in Theology and Arabic. She worked as Sudan Desk Manager and Executive Assistant to the CEO at Muslim Aid and is experienced in project design and management, monitoring & evaluation, finance management, HR and bid-writing. She has worked with Somali refugees in a voluntary capacity in the UK and Yemen campaigning for access to services. She has recently worked with the Mosque & Imam National Advisory Board developing standards and training for Mosques and Islamic training institutes.
Susannah Pickering-Saqqa, Communications & Partnerships Advisor
Susannah has an MPhil in Turkish Islamic Studies and an MSc in NGO and Development Management. She is a specialist in partnership building and communications with international experience in Bangladesh, Turkey and Palestine at Muslim Aid, the British Council and the Commonwealth Foundation. She also worked as a senior manager in the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone’s International Team. Susannah is currently a Lecturer in International Development & NGO Management at the University of East London.
Evana Matibag, Finance Manager
Evana Matibag is a qualified accountant from the Philippines with substantial experience as a Senior Finance Manager for an international NGO based in London. Evana has worked in South and South East Asia, Africa and the UK. She is currently studying for Chartered Accountancy in the UK and works with Faith Regen Foundation on a part-time basis.
Nadeem Javaid, Chair of Youth Supporter Group
Nadeem is a graduate from the University of Westminister in Information Systems with Business Management. He has worked and volunteered at a number of international NGOs including Muslim Aid and Islamic Relief. For MADE in Europe he chairs the Youth Supporter Group and offers training and consultation on online campaigning and activism strategies. Nadeem is currently serving as a Faiths Act Fellow working to promote interfaith action for acheiving the Millennium Development Goals.