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.

In recognition of his leadership drive to continuously enhance Human Appeal's humanitarian operations, the Humanitarian Hero Award was won by Dr Mohamed Ashmawey in Brussels at the AidEx 2022 global conference. The AidEx Humanitarian Hero Award sets out to recognise and celebrate stand-out individuals from the humanitarian aid and development community worldwide.

Owais Khan

Deputy CEO

Owais Khan has spent the last 14 years working within the development sector, dedicated to working and inspiring others to connect Human Appeal resources, donors and partners with those facing urgent and ongoing humanitarian crises all over the globe.

Prior to joining Human Appeal, Owais streamlined the English and Arabic website and online donation process for a leading charity in the MENA region, generating £2.5m in donations in the first month and spearheading production and delivery of engaging content. He also established a global communications steering group at another leading global humanitarian aid organisation, and steered the marketing strategy for their global Ramadan campaign.

Since joining the Human Appeal family in September 2014, Owais has ensured seamless communication of Human Appeal’s core mission, as well as celebrating the organisation’s 25th anniversary. As Deputy CEO, he reports directly to the CEO and Chair of the Board of Trustees, and oversees the organisation’s daily operations. He is also responsible for leading the charity’s development, growth, and ongoing digital transformation to ensure that Human Appeal connects to both donors and people in need internationally, to deliver the organisation’s goal of being Here for Every Human.

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.

Pulvisha Raja

Associate 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.

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.

Dr Ahmed Nasr

Director of Performance and Accountability

Dr Ahmed Nasr has nearly 30 years of experience in the nonprofit sector worldwide, with experience in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Prior to joining Human Appeal as the Director of Performance and Accountability, he led strategic and operational planning, program design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation for organizations. He brings his passion for exploring the intersection of faith and humanitarian work to his role at Human Appeal.

He holds a Master’s in Development Studies along with postgraduate diplomas in Public Health and Medicine. He earned a Bachelor’s in Medicine and Surgery.

Dr Nasr joined Human Appeal to contribute to and support its efforts to create a better world.