Dr Mohamed Ashmawey

Chief Executive Officer

Dr. Mohamed Ashmawey has led the Human Appeal family as CEO since April 2019. He has many years’ experience working for the charity sector, including as CEO for Islamic Relief USA and Islamic Relief Worldwide, as well as a consultant on the development sector across Europe and the Middle East. Until 2016, he was also a member of the Civil Society Advisory Team created by the World Economic Forum.

Prior to that, he worked for 18 years as an engineer and as a manager for General Motors, having completed a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland.

Dr. Ashmawey is committed to ethical, conscientious development, and dedicating his skills to empower the most vulnerable people around the world.

Hameed Al-Asaly

Director of Emerging Markets

Hameed Al-Asaly has served at a senior level for a number of commercial and public organisations in the UK and Yemen in the fields of infrastructure and business development.

He began his career as a mechanical engineer, before switching to the IT sector, working for universities and the NHS. He has a Masters in Information Engineering from Sheffield Hallam University.

Hameed joined Human Appeal in 2012, hoping to bring innovation from the commercial sector to improve the charity sector, and support the most vulnerable people.

He has been the Director of Emerging Markets since 2017, through which he has guided and expanded the Human Appeal family in Europe, and supported our offices in France, Spain, and Ireland.

Graham Sutherland

Director of Finance and Services

Graham Sutherland has over 25 years’ experience as a board member in the manufacturing, distribution, and not-for-profit industries. He has served as Director of Finance and Services since 2019, and oversees financial, internal auditing, procurement, and compliance at Human Appeal.

He has a degree in Economics, and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. In his spare time, he enjoys golf, running marathons, and playing tennis.

Graham joined Human Appeal in order to use his skills to help empower the most vulnerable people.

Pulvisha Raja

Interim Director of People and Culture

Pulvisha heads our People and Culture Department, which deals with human resources, safeguarding, volunteer management, and talent acquisition.

Holding a BSc in Psychology and an MSc in Human Resources Management, Pulvisha has maintained and developed our HR and management functions over the past three years. She is accredited with level 7 by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

Pulvisha joined Human Appeal to put her skills towards a positive change, and to support our global workforce to become a leading organisation in our field.

In her spare time, Pulvisha enjoys reading and travelling.

Owais Khan

Director of Communications

Owais has over 20 years’ experience in marketing, campaigns, creative production and communications across several large charities. He holds a Master’s degree in Communications from the University of Hertfordshire and has both a global marketing background and vast experience in major development organisations.

Owais streamlined Qatar Charity’s English and Arabic website and online donation process, generating £2.5m in the first month. He played a pivotal role in producing and delivering engaging content for the charity. He also established a global communications steering group at Islamic Relief and steered the marketing strategy for their global Ramadan campaign.

Since joining our Human Appeal family in September 2014, Owais has ensured seamless delivery of quality campaigns. He led Human Appeal’s 25th anniversary and multiple compelling and creative marketing campaigns.

Owais has spent the last 14 years working within the development sector and he endeavours to work and inspire others through his work to ensure people around the world are able to connect with the people that Human Appeal helps.

Zaheer Khan

Director of Community Fundraising

Zaheer manages Human Appeal’s fundraising in the United Kingdom. He has over 14 years’ experience in marketing, fundraising, and communications across several large charities, including in the position of director. He has a degree in business management, and his work has taken him to Bangladesh, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Myanmar, Pakistan, the Philippines, Syria, and Tanzania.

His personal highlights have been raising money for 850 widows and orphaned children to travel to Umrah, and raising awareness for survivors of acid violence, work which was later featured in an Oscar-winning documentary.

The devastation of the Pakistan earthquake in 2005 left a lasting impression on Zaheer, compelling him to dedicate his life to helping vulnerable people.

Mehdi Benmrad

Director of International Programmes

Mehdi has led Human Appeal’s International Programmes since 2019, which organises, improves and guides our projects across the globe.

He worked for a decade in the IT industry, before completing an MBA in International Management at the University of Stuttgart, and switching to the international aid sector in 2007. Since then, he has worked for non-governmental organisations in Geneva, Qatar, and the UK.

Mehdi joined the Human Appeal family in order to use his skills for a greater purpose, under energetic and ethical leadership. In his spare time, he enjoys reading and studying history.