Sohair Riad is a program officer in Ford’s Middle East and North Africa office, focused on making grants to support regional social justice organizations.

Sohair has more than 14 years of experience designing and implementing development and human rights programs across the MENA region. Prior to joining Ford, she worked with Oxfam International as advocacy coordinator and, later, as the head of programs, overseeing civic space, economic justice, and gender justice work in Egypt and Tunisia. In addition to ensuring the quality implementation of projects and grants with over 30 national NGO partners, she helped set the strategic direction for in-country programmatic work. She also developed operational plans and built strategic partnerships. Earlier in her career, Sohair was the head of the regional research unit at the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies. Her other roles involved research, human rights advocacy, and providing technical support on policy analysis and recommendations to regional civil society organizations.

Sohair studied international human rights law and holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and Middle East studies from the American University in Cairo.