Ramish Chohan

I have an excellent eight years of diverse work experience with well-known development organizations like the Department for International Development (DFID), the British High Commission, the Kenya Embassy, the United Nations Development Program, BRAC and Kiva etc. My professional experience with UK’s Department for International Development, BRAC, United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and as a Kiva fellow has allowed me to work closely with rural communities in Pakistan and to enhance my research expertise. At BRAC, I designed a pilot microfinance program in Pakistan which I later scaled up. In fact my performance at BRAC was declared the best amongst Kiva Coordinators (KC) from over 86 countries in 2014. In recognition of my exceptional services at BRAC as KC, I received a distinction from Kiva’s headquarters in San Francisco. Besides that Kiva also published my interview with my photo in the Kiva newsletter. In 2016, I was the second applicant to be ever selected from Pakistan for the Kiva fellowship program. Moreover, as a financial researcher and analyst at UNDP for Climate Public Expenditure & Institutional Review (CPEIR), had given me an opportunity to further enhance my skills with evidence-based research and systematic qualitative and quantitative analysis. I hold Master's in International Development Studies and Bachelors in Sociology. 

SKILLS MS Office, Report writing, Data Entry, Research, and Analysis

LANGUAGES Urdu, English, Arabic (reading)

Administration Officer (Civil servant)                                                    March 2019 – Oct  2019

UK Department for International Development (DFID), British High Commission

Administrative support to the Governance Group Head and Deputy Group Head: 

• Arranging internal and external meetings, logistical support for briefings, conferences, receptions and visits. Booking flights and accommodation. 
• Completing visa applications and where appropriate, seeking letters of invitation and security clearances. 
• Managing information and communications through a variety of channels and maintaining public records.
• Managing internal website, uploading materials, maintaining spreadsheets, and calendars, and keeping minutes of meetings.
• Drafting and issuing letters and emails and, 
• Maintaining positive relationships with DFID’s external partners

Administrative support to the AAWAZ program: (child labour, early and forced marriage, gender-based violence (GBV), and conflict in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

• Assisted with the effective administration and management of projects or staff in accordance with DFID’s rules and procedures. include; keeping records up-to-date; maintaining asset inventories and checks; assisting in the procurement of consultants. 
• Participated in monitoring and design of projects or taking forward HR Business Support Issues.
• Participated in Processing payments, budget management, monitoring expenditures and assisted in inaccurate financial forecasting exercises. 

Trade/Consular Assistant and Translator                                                          Nov 2016 – Nov  2017

Kenya Embassy Islamabad

• Assisted First Secretary Consular in visa processing, passport applications, and other consular-related matters. Drafted, and edited the consular correspondence. Responded to queries related to visas and passports through e-mail and telephone. 
• Prepared Ambassador’s PowerPoint presentations, talks and reading materials for conferences and meetings.
• Prepared periodic progress reports and was responsible for record-keeping, documentation, and preparation of activity reports.
• Prepared Minutes of Meetings, Annual plans, and periodic reports.
• Responsible for arranging NOC for diplomats. Provided translation services from Urdu to English and English to Urdu. 
• Assisted applicants in completing requisite forms and furnishing required documentary evidence and other related and procedural requirements.

Project Coordinator                                                                                             Sep 2015 – May 2016 

Snow Leopard Foundation- Wildlife Conservation

• Prepared Situational Analysis Report of the Karakoram Pamir landscape.
• Assisted in Implementing Management Plan for the Karakoram Pamir landscape.
• Prepared Proposals for Donors.
• Developed questionnaires to carry out field research.
• Prepared periodic Result Oriented Reports (monthly, quarterly, Annual).
• Quality assurance of Punjab tourism project implemented by Govt. of Punjab, tourism department, and database management.
• Regular filling and Recordkeeping.

Consultant-Financial Researcher & Analyst                                                       July 2014 – Dec 2014

United Nations Development Program - UNDP

Assignment: “Climate Public Expenditure & Institutional Review”-CPEIR

Factual and analytical research in specific institutional, policy, and financial aspects of climate-related federal and provincial government activity;

• Collected and compiled data on the Key Performance Indicators for implementing partners and preparing KPI reports.
• Created database and spreadsheets for analysis by the CPEIR team;
• Detailed Financial Data Analysis and Budget Analysis of climate change projects at the provincial and federal levels.
• Detailed Budget variance Analysis and illustrated pie charts of CC projects. 
• Identification, classification, and assessing the CC expenditures on the basis of adaptation and mitigation. 

Program Manager- Kiva Coordinator                                                                 Jan 2013 – July 2014

BRAC, Micro-Finance Department 

I was heading the Kiva Program (a web-based MF lending) of BRAC Pakistan. I joined BRAC as Fund Raising Officer and was promoted to a new role as Kiva Coordinator within six months. I supervised four field staff. 

• Prepare complete and effective MF borrower profiles and upload them on the Kiva website for fundraising purposes.
• Maintained database and filing of all necessary program records/ documents.
• Delivered performance update presentations at various meetings and workshops. 
• Supervised field staff and provided training to maintain the efficiency of the MF program.
• Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual management reports and journals on Kiva.
• Prepared periodic progress reports to be presented to the BRAC management and donor.

Fundraising Officer                                                                                              July 2012 – Jan 2013

BRAC, Micro-Finance Department 

• Supervised field-level staff responsibilities and provided program training. 
• Regular visits to the field areas for interviewing Microfinance (MF) clients and collecting data for preparing client profiles (case studies, loan schedules, etc). Upload MF profiles on Kiva PA2 for fundraising purposes. 
• Filing all necessary program documents and maintaining a proper database. 
• Delivered performance update presentations at various meetings and workshops. 
• Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual management reports.
• Update donors about MF client’s business and progress through uploading monthly  journals 

SHORT TERM CONSULTANCIES

Monitoring and Evaluation Consultant                                                    June 2017 – Aug 2017

KIVA

• On-site monitoring of Kiva Field Partner and prepared a final consultancy report. 
• Provided training and technical assistance on Kiva systems, processes, and policies to Field Partner staff members involved in the Kiva workflow.
• Collected and compile data on the Key Performance Indicators for implementing partners and prepare KPI reports.

1. Individual Consultant                                                                                          Aug 2014 – Nov 2014

United Nations Development Program - UNDP

Project: PAKSTRAN Sustainable Transport Project

• Prepared monthly, quarterly, and Annual Progress reports.
• Analyzed and prepared comments on Capacity Development Plan prepared by partner NGOs.
• Prepared TOR for consultants.
• Assisted in annual project reviews and planning workshops.
• Maintained strong relationships with donors and stakeholders.

INTERNSHIP: United Nations Development Program – UNDP, Grass Root Initiative Program (GRIP)

Jan 2012 – July 2012

• Prepared Baseline Survey Reports.
• Managed database and logs.
• Analyzed and utilized data, both qualitative and qualitative.  

FELLOWSHIP:  Kiva Fellow at Kiva                                                                           Jan 2016 –June 2016

Kiva is headquartered in San Francisco with a mission to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty. The Kiva Fellows Program is a competitive 6-month placement in the field. I was the 2nd fellow selected for the Kiva fellowship from Pakistan and was the 1st Kiva Coordinator selected for this fellowship. 

• Conducted on-site monitoring of the MF clients of the Kiva’s partner NGOs in Pakistan i.e. KASHF Foundation, BRAC, and Jinnah Welfare Society. 
• Conducted training on organization policies and procedures.

MSc Climate Justice, 

Masters in International Development Studies 

Bachelors of Arts in Sociology