Omar Zakhilwal
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| Omar Zakhilwal | |
|---|---|
| File:Omar Zakhilwal.jpg | |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 3 March 2009 – 1 February 2015 |
|
| President | Hamid Karzai Ashraf Ghani |
| Preceded by | Anwar ul-Haq Ahady |
| Succeeded by | Eklil Ahmad Hakimi |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1968 (age 55–56) Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan |
| Alma mater | University of Winnipeg Queen's University |
| Religion | Islam |
Omar Zakhilwal (Pashto: ډاکتر عمر زاخيلوال ; born 1968) is a politician in Afghanistan, serving as the Finance Minister and Chief Economic Advisor to the President Hamid Karzai.[1] He is also the president of the Afghanistan Cricket Board.[2]
Early life
Zakhilwal was born in 1968 in the Nangarhar or Jalalabad of Afghanistan.[3] He is believed to be an ethnic Pashtun.[4] In 1984, at the age of 17, Zakhilwal along with his family fled his country among the Afghan refugees and settled in Peshawar, Pakistan. In 1991, he along with the family immigrated to Canada.
Education and academics
Zakhilwal obtained his Bachelor's degree in economics at the University of Winnipeg in Manitoba, Canada. He then moved to Kingston, Ontario, where he earned a Master's degree in economics at Queen's University. Soon after that he found a job with Statistics Canada in Ottawa, where he completed a doctorate in economics at Carleton University. He graduated in 2001.[1]
Zakhilwal published numerous articles and research papers on political, economic and social issues related to Afghanistan for newspapers, magazines and journals such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Wahdat, Forum of Federation Quarterly, Human Rights Tribune, Al-Ehram, Afghan Post, Heela, Dawat, Mujahid Wolus, Afghan Mosaic, and Afghan Mirror.[5] His work is in English, Pashto and Dari, and some of his articles are available on the internet.
Politics
Over the course of his stay in Afghanistan, Zakhilwal has been part of the 2002 and 2003 loya jirgas. He served as an author of Afghanistan's First National Human Development Report, which was released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in February 2007 and won the UN special award for best analysis in June 2007.
He also worked as an Afghan counterpart to the North-South Institute-led "What Kind of Peace is Possible?" research project, examining the role of community led development in sustainable peace building, as well as working on a strategy for Counter-Narcotics Alternative Livelihood in Afghanistan. He has done consulting work for the World Bank, UNDP, CIDA and other organizations.
Zakhilwal served as the President of the Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA), a member of the Supreme Council of Da Afghanistan Bank, Acting Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation, and the Chief Advisor to the Minister of Rural Development of Afghanistan. He became the Chief Economic Advisor to President Hamid Karzai in July 2008, and in March 2009 he was chosen as the new Minister of Finance.
Work history
| Chief Economic Advisor to the President of Afghanistan | |
| Ministry of Finance | Finance Minister |
| Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) | Chairman |
| Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA) | President |
| Transport and Civil Aviation | Acting Minister |
| Da Afghanistan Bank | Member of the Supreme Council |
| Minister of Rural Development of Afghanistan | The Chief Advisor |
| Government of Canada | Senior Research Economist |
| Carleton University in Ottawa | Professor of Economics |
| Board of Directors of Partnership Afghanistan Canada | President |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://www.afghancricket.af/board.html
- ↑ Zakhilwal, Dr. Hazrat Omar Zakhelwal
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 http://www.institute-for-afghan-studies.org/iasmembersbio/omarbio.htm
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister of Finance 2009–2015 |
Succeeded by Eklil Ahmad Hakimi |
