Shoaib Harris is Director of Rumi Consultancy. Harris has worked in various humanitarian, corporate and media organizations in the US, EU and Afghanistan over the last decade. Completing his freshman studies at John Cabot University in Rome, Italy Harris studied Economics Development at Columbia University and graduated with Magnus Cum Laude honors, remaining on the Dean’s List throughout the course of his studies. In late 1990s and early 2000s, Harris worked as Senior Program Officer and Acting Regional Manager at ACBAR-Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief. Harris has regularly written about Afghanistan, from blogging on Huffington Post to producing analyses on several forums including South Asia Global Affairs Foreign Policy Magazine and Columbia University School of International and Public Affair’s Communiqué. Harris is fluent in Pashtu, Dari, English and Italian with basic knowledge of Arabic (classic), Ancient Greek, and Latin. Harris’s field of interest is the role of language, culture and religion in promotion of human welfare.
Bilal Sarwary is Rumi’s Public Relations Consultant. Sarwary has studied Political Science in the Middlebury College of Vermont specializing on the central linkages between warfare, drugs and terrorism. Sarwary currently works as a reporter/producer for the Kabul bureau of BBC World Service. He has also worked for ABC News, National Public Radio, and Abudabi TV. His work as a reporter has taken Bilal to every province of Afghanistan. Sarwary is proficient in Dari, Pashtu, Urdu and English.
Ustaz Haq works as the Islamic legal consultant at Rumi. Haq has received two Masters in Sociology and Islamic Jurisprudences from University of Peshawar and International Islamic University of Islamabad. He has additionally received training in legislation drafting and comparative constitutional law from International Development Law Organization. Haq has held various positions within the aid community in Afghanistan and Pakistan over the last decade. Mr. Haq is proficient in Arabic (Modern and Classic), Dari, Pashtu, English and Urdu.
Sayed Suleiman Amanzad is the Production Manager at Rumi. Amanzad has studied in the United States for one year as part of Youth Exchange and Study Program (YES). He has also received a one-year training at Afghan Voices in journalism and filmmaking. Sulaiman has produced many short documentaries. His films have featured in Open City London Film Festival, Bayside Australia Film Festival and Human Rights Film Festival.
Sayed Jan Sabawoon is Rumi’s Director of photography. Sabawoon has been working within the international media community since 1998. His work has featured in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, NPR, MSNBC, Reuters, Aljazeera, and many other renowned media outlets. He has also worked as a trainer for Afghan Voices, which is a media training organization based in Kabul. Sayed jan has received training in video and photojournalism and editing in Malaysia and the Czech Republic.