In this Q&A, managing director Liam Dowd talks with Liza Schillo, manager, global product sustainability at Levi Strauss & Co, on the company’s recent announcement regarding new climate targets
Madhubanti Anashua has been a consultant with the Bangladesh PaCT program since May 2021. She is working in the “Enhancing Sector Competitiveness” component of the program, facilitating public policy dialogues to bring about regulatory reforms in the sector.
Prior to joining IFC, she worked with WFP Bangladesh in a World-Bank funded project in partnership with the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief to build social and environmental resilience among vulnerable Rohingya populations in Cox’s Bazar. Her role involved partnership management, reporting and programme implementation. She also worked as a consultant in a UNDP Bangladesh project to facilitate knowledge-based decision-making in the Economic Relations Division of the Ministry of Finance.
She completed her Bachelor’s in Geographic Information Science from Clark University and went on to do a Master’s in Environmental Science and Policy from Central European University. She has also worked as a journalist for The Daily Star.
Nishat Nahrin Hamid joined as an ET Consultant with the Bangladesh PACT team in May 2022. She supports the PaCT II Program.
Prior to IFC, Nishat was Head of Key Segment in Enterprise Business (B2B) at Banglalink Digital Communications, with a focus on business development and portfolio management. Her diverse work experience has been in the private sector across various geographic locations: Consultancy/ Internal Audit at Deloitte & Touche (New York), Local Corporate Relationship Management at Citibank (Dubai), Financial Institution Relationship Management/ Treasury and Trade Solutions Management (Sales and Product) at Citibank (Dhaka), and Management with a Focus in Sustainability and Circular Economy at Shasha Denims (Dhaka).
Nishat has two undergraduate degrees in Chemical Engineering (BS) and Mathematics (BA), followed by MBA from University at Buffalo, The State University of New York. She also has a second Masters in Climate Change and Development (MS) from Independent University Bangladesh after taking a ten-year gap from her first graduate degree.
Nishat loves to travel in her free time. She is also a staunch supporter of local Bangladeshi handloom products such as Jamdani.
Consultant – Communications
Alavy Kifait Reza joined the PaCT program as a consultant in May 2019. She provides support on program management, communications, and knowledge management and provides technical support to the program. Her past professional work experiences include project management and research design in the textile industry where she worked on research projects funded by AFD and ADB to understand the feasibility of green industry in the textile industry and understanding the status of sustainable development of the industry.
She is passionate about environmental sustainability and development. Alavy holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Chemical Engineering from Monash and a Master’s degree in Environmental Management from International University, Bangladesh.
Operations Officer
Part of the PaCT Core team, Adiba has been working with IFC since 2007. She manages the firm level advisory interventions as well as provides overall program management support to the PaCT Program. In the previous phase of PaCT, Adiba managed the stakeholder engagement component that led to key policy reforms. In her previous positions at the Investment Climate unit of IFC, she had led several initiatives that includes promoting environmental management systems in economic zones, low carbon zones, and improving Government to Business services at the national level. She holds an MBA with a concentration on International Business from the Independent University of Bangladesh.
Consultant – eService and ICT led solution development
Md Nazim ud dowla noor joined IFC in May 2012 as a consultant for ICT led systems development for advisory services. Prior to joining PaCT team in 2017, he worked mainly on e-Governance and ICT led reforms for investment climate of Bangladesh. As part of the PaCT Team, he has been working on the ICT led solutions for textile sector for getting business insights, measuring impacts, taking effective business decisions and measuring productivity.
Being certified Oracle and Linux professional, he has great interest in data analytics, data science and machine learning. In his free time, he likes reading books, playing games and taking photographs.
Consultant – Resource Efficiency
Prior to joining PaCT, Tanvir worked for two years with the South China Dyeing and Bleaching Factory as a Production Officer, and before that, he served as a Dyeing Officer at Coats Bangladesh Ltd. He also had a two-year spell exploring a different stream, at Brenntag Bangladesh Ltd, where he worked as a Senior Technical Officer. A Textile Engineer by training, Tanvir graduated from Bangladesh Textile University in 2009. Like every nine out of ten Bangladeshis, he loves cricket, and when there is no cricket match to watch, he enjoys reading.
Consultant – Resource Efficiency
Mr. Fakhrul has more than 14 years’ experience in factory operations and maintenance, as well as work on resource efficiency and environmental projects for industries including textiles, agro, leather etc. in Bangladesh. His experience includes factory operations and maintenance in several textile industries (Epyllion Knittex and fabrics Limited, Fakhruddin Textile Mills Ltd, Saiham Knit Composite Ltd. etc); erection and commissioning (energy saving and reduced GHG emissions) of Huskpack boiler in different agro-industries throughout Bangladesh for Thermax India, Worked with Reed Consulting Bangladesh Ltd. for different sustainable projects like SEDF cleaner production project (Resource efficiency and greener textile), Fire safety project for Primark and so on. He is currently working with the International Finance Corporation (IFC ) invented Partnership for Cleaner Textile (PaCT) project to improve environmental aspects to the industries in Bangladesh. He holds an MBA (operations Management) from American International University of Bangladesh (AIUB) and is a Graduate in Mechanical Engineering from Khulna University of Engineering and Technology.
Program Assistant
Sarder Niamul Islam joined PaCT team as a Program Assistant in July 2016. Niamul’s IFC career began in May 2005 when he joined the South-Asia Enterprise Development Facility (SEDF) program as an Office Administrator. He continued working in this role till August 2011; he then moved to IFC’s Kathmandu office in Nepal, for a Development Assignment as an Office Administrator to help the Nepal Country Manager’s office, Resident Representative and country office facility management. Prior to joining PaCT, Niamul worked in the Dhaka IFC Investment team as a Program Assistant from 2012 to 2016. During these years at IFC, Niamul has accomplished several trainings on skill development, facilities management, procurement, effective communication skills, Integrity Due Diligence (IDD), Admin Portal and creating selection memos, selection of firm and consultancy services.
Niamul is an MBA from American International University – Bangladesh (AIUB) and a Masters Graduate in English Literature from National University Bangladesh. Before joining IFC, he worked for an agribusiness development project of USAID, where he gained experience in working with the shrimp stakeholders of Bangladesh and international buyers to run a campaign program for Bangladeshi Shrimp sector to comply with the international buyer’s code of conducts and certify according to the World Wild Life Fund and HACCP. In his personal life, Niamul is very adventurous, and likes travelling and photography. He a musician, a composer, and a singer.
Operations Analyst
Mohammad Zahin Rahman has been a consultant with the Bangladesh PaCT program since May, 2015. He is working in the factory outreach component of the PaCT team, performing analytics on Cleaner Production Assessment data from textile factories. Prior to joining IFC, he worked as an Environmental Advisor at GIZ for the promotion of eco-efficiency and environmental standards in the Bangladeshi textiles industry. He was extensively involved in structuring chemical management training programs for factory management and consultants, managing pilot projects for environment-friendly disposal methods for toxic sludge resulting from wastewater treatment at textile factories, and was involved in the development of the ‘National Sludge Management Standards and Guidelines’. Zahin has a degree in Chemical Engineering from Villanova University, 2011, and is currently working towards obtaining a Master’s in Development Management and Practice from BRAC University.
Program Manager
Nishat Shahid Chowdhury joined IFC in 2012 as Deputy Program Manager and a Textile Sustainability Specialist for the Bangladesh Partnership for Cleaner Textile (PaCT) Program. She is leading the ‘200 factory outreach’ Component of the program and is responsible for advising textile sector clients on sustainable industrial best practices that help address energy, water, and chemical management challenges.
Prior to joining IFC, she worked for four years as the Senior Environmental Advisor at GIZ for Improving Eco-efficiency and Environmental Standards of Textile and RMG factories.
As an Environmental Specialist of a USAID funded project, she made a significant contribution to promoting Cleaner Production concept in the Bangladesh textile and RMG factories and improving the monitoring and enforcement capacity of the Department of Environment of Bangladesh. Her previous experiences include working for European Commission and CIDA funded projects focused on pollution management and verification of arsenic mitigation technologies.
Ms. Nishat was also a lecturer of the Department of Environmental Science and Management, North South University, Dhaka. She is a certified lead EMS Auditor (ISO 14001:2004) and has extensive experience in auditing textile, ship recycling, pharmaceutical, battery, fish processing and plastic industries. Ms. Nishat is a Commonwealth Scholar, and studied in the University of Aberdeen, Scotland.
