Researchers & officials

Research Assistant

Md. Mustafizur Rahman Shetu is a highly motivated graduate with a strong Public Administration and Governance Studies academic background. Throughout his academic journey, he actively engaged in extracurricular activities and leadership roles. His dedication to education, creativity, and research is evident through his extensive list of publications and a keen passion for exploring new horizons. He aspires to contribute his skills and commitment to the dynamic research world.

Beyond academia, he has diverse experiences, including working as a Research Assistant on Exploring Changes and Innovations in Service Delivery: A Study on the Innovative Actions of Bangladesh Post and Impact of Covid-19 on Food Security: A Study in Two Selected Districts. He has been recognized with numerous awards and achievements, including champion in the Hult Prize on Campus two times, champion in an intra-university public speaking competition, and champion in the Bangla debate competition at Cadet College. Prestigious scholarships like the Bangabandhu Merit Scholarship further highlight his dedication to academic and extracurricular pursuits.

In addition to his academic and extracurricular achievements, Shetu possesses strong professional skills, including proficiency in MS Office, leadership, teamwork, and communication. His notable research publication, “Assessing Citizen’s Trust on Local Government: A Study on Muktagacha and Trishal Upazilla,” in the Journal of Governance and Development, and The Impact of Government Surveillance on Individuals’ Right to Privacy and Freedom of Expression in Bangladesh – International Conference on Technology, Business and Justice towards Smart Bangladesh |ICTBJ- 2023 reflects his academic skill. Moreover, he is currently engaged in ongoing research projects covering various topics such as e-governance, sustainable development, the safety of working women in the NGO sector, climate change and urban slums, the socio-economic gender gap in Bangladesh, and the mobile gender gap in South Asia.

Senior Officer, Data Analytics

Md. Imran Azad is currently working as a Senior Officer of Data Analytics unitat Development Research Initiative (dRi) since January, 2018 to present. The major responsibilities performed under this organization include assisting in planning and designing of the research projects, conducting training session for the field researchers, and preparing questionnaire for survey, preparing Quantitative Data Collection Tools in various platforms such as ODK, Survey CTO, KOBO toolbox etc., operating data collection applications and maintaining servers like Survey Solution, Akvo Flow etc., supervising the field researchers and making sure that quality of data is collected, transcribe, transcript the primary materials and assist in conducting analysis of the data, assisting in cleaning raw data and analyzing it on various data analysis software like SPSS, STATA and maintaining communication with different donors for various research projects.

Senior Officer, Business Development

Wazida Hasan has 08 (eight) years working experience as Social Researcher and Gender Expert. She has special skill in proposal writing and conducting social research for various international and national development organizations and consultancy firms. Range of her expertise includes conducting mixed method research, training sessions, advocacy on social issues.

She has training and extensive practical experience in gender, social inclusion, SRHR, Child rights, Health and Nutrition, Labour Rights, Humanitarian Crisis etc. She has special training on social and environmental safeguard policies used in the World Bank and ADB funded projects and programs. She is also well versed in project evaluation, policy research and the design of analytical research and evaluation methodologies in both fixed and flexible design approaches. She has expertise in Planning and designing of research projects, Preparing data analysis report etc.

She has been working with Development Research Initiative (dRi) from September 2019 as Senior Officer of Fundraising & Business Development unit and she is responsible for research designing, tools development, successful completion of projects etc. As part of her job she is responsible for maintaining communication with different development partners and other organizations for various research projects as needed. She has worked on projects funded by renowned organizations including UNDP, ILO, World Bank, ADB, Save the Children Oxfam etc

Research Assistant

Ayshee Rani Das has completed graduation and post-graduation in Public Administration from Jahangirnagar University. She has been working as a Research Assistant at Development Research Initiative from November, 2020. After joining at this organization, she has contributed in different projects as a Research Assistant with different organizations including  “Investigating the Impact of Mobile Internet Uptake and Use by Women” which was a project with CTIC (Centre for Technology, Innovation and Competition); “FHI 360 – Community Engagement Activities” a project with FHI Solution; “Final Evaluation of Inclusive Response to the Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis” a project with Save the Children Bangladesh; “Political Economy of COVID 19 Governance in Bangladesh” a project with BRAC Institute of Governance and Development; “Survival of Small Businesses: How Useful the Stimulus Packages Have Been” a project with Centre for Policy Dialogue; “Public Perception Survey – Partnership for a Tolerant, Inclusive Bangladesh (PTIB)” a project with UNDP Bangladesh; “Urban Mobility and Marginal Communities” a project with University of Westminster; “Indirect Effects of Covid-19 on Essential Health and Nutrition Services in Bangladesh: A Qualitative Study” a project with Oxford Policy Management and World Bank Bangladesh and many more. Moreover, she is also contributing in Translation and transcription of reports of various projects in Development Research Initiative (dRi).

During her graduation she worked in some qualitative researches with the faculty members as a translator and typist. Those researches were based on health and nutrition, social safety net, climate change and gender discrimination. She is also working with some voluntary organizations Physically Challenged Development Foundation (PDF) which aims at working for the physically challenged students; ‘Badhan- A voluntary blood donation organization and Programs in Youth Ending Hunger and other voluntary organizations gave her some experiences of leadership role in project or program coordination and management, time management, event management, communication, budgeting, and fund-raising.

Junior Officer, Communication & Public Relation

Nishat Jahan Ananna has pursued her BSS and MSS degree in Disaster and Human Security Management from Bangladesh University of Professionals. She has been working as a Research Assistant in Development Research Initiative (dRi) from September, 2021. She is responsible for assistance in planning and designing of the research projects, conducting training sessions for the field researchers, supervising the field researchers as well as ensuring the quality of data collection and research output, preparing desk reports and providing assistance in preparing final project reports. During her graduation, she was the treasurer of BUP Disaster Management Forum (DMF) and a general member of BUP Research Society.

Besides, she provided translation and transcription services for different organizations in her university days. Furthermore, she is involved with different voluntary organizations which aim to work for social development. She is a development researcher with hands on experience in qualitative and quantitative methods, research design, research methodology, translation, transcription, field work/data collection, analysis and report writing. She has sound knowledge on Microsoft office and ArcGIS. Disaster management, climate change, gender inequality, urban poverty, food security, disability and child rights are the focus of her area of interest.

Junior  Officer, Business Development

Fariha Alam has completed her bachelor’s degree in Environmental science from North South University and previously she completed an internship in the Urban climate change programme of International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) as part of her degree prerequisite. During her academic life, she has conducted both qualitative and quantitative studies as part of her course requirements. In addition, she has experience in secondary research from her undergraduate thesis where she conducted a regional review on urban ecosystem services studies in South Asia. She initially joined dRi as an intern and currently she is working as a junior officer in the Business Development unit of dRi. Her major responsibilities include developing study tools, writing project reports, maintaining communication and coordination with clients, documenting and presenting study findings to clients. She is also responsible for overseeing the training sessions of field research teams and data quality whenever required. She has a special interest in cross-cutting issues like social justice, food security, gender-based violence, climate change adaptation and resilience, urban socio-cultural and environmental sustainability.

Finance and Admin Officer

Tohidul Islam, an accomplished finance professional, holds an M. Com in Accounting from the National University and boasts over 15 years of experience spanning Finance, Administration, and Operations. Currently, he works at Development Research Initiatives (dRi). He hasexperience in Books of Accounts and financial statements, meticulous payroll and tax management, and the overall financial monitoring of projects.

Prior to his role at dRi, heworked at renowned organizations such as FHI 360 and AED. His dedication and proficiency in financial management have been assets to the success of these organizations. He also contributed to the growth and prosperity of Technohaven Company Ltd., where his financial acumen played a vital role in achieving the company’s objectives.

Junior HR & Finance officer

Ms. Jubaida Islam joined dRi as a Research Assistant after completing her Bachelor’s Degree from American International University – Bangladesh. She has been successfully supporting research teams that deploy qualitative and quantitative methodologies in a number of projects. Her research experiences cover different sectors such as education, child marriage, child abuse and exploitation, legal rights and social development. Her expertise includes data processing and transcription of qualitative information.

Intern

Koushik Roy has completed his bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from Jahangirnagar University. He has a strong academic background and rich experience in various research projects related to migration, culture, human behavior, indigenous peoples, and the environment. He has recently joined as an Intern at the Development Research Initiative (dRi), where he is involved in conducting quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis for different studies. Besides that, he is proficient in using Microsoft Office Packages, KoBo Collect, and Atlas.ti. He is always eager to learn new skills and explore new opportunities in the field of anthropology. He is a driven, ambitious, and enthusiastic person who loves to challenge himself and grow as a researcher.

Office Assistant

Md. Ariful Islam is a high school graduate and working as a Junior Office Assistant at dRi for 06 years. His responsibilities include assisting the Senior Office Assistant in administrative activities.

Cleaner

Kholesha is working at dRi as a Cleaner. She has joined dRi in 2018