Mustafa Babak

About Mustafa Babak

I am a strategy, governance, and institution-building leader with over 20 years of multisector experience across public, nonprofit, multilateral, and post-conflict settings.Across my career, I have focused on helping institutions move from vision to execution — building the structures, systems, partnerships, and decision-making processes that allow organizations and public systems to operate effectively, adapt to change, and create lasting impact. My experience spans organizational strategy, public financial management, health financing, governance reform, strategic communications, research and analysis, community leadership, and institution-building in both U.S. and international contexts.I currently serve as Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Afghan-American Foundation, where I have helped build a national institution focused on policy advocacy, public education, and civic and community leadership for Afghan Americans. This work has involved not only responding to urgent policy and community realities, but also building the governance, operational infrastructure, partnerships, and strategic direction needed for long-term credibility and sustainability.Previously, I worked with the World Bank and Palladium on public financial management, health financing, governance, and systems reform across multiple countries, helping governments and partners assess systems, strengthen planning and budgeting, and improve how institutions translate priorities into implementation. Earlier in my career in Afghanistan, I worked across media development, strategic communications, behavior change, and post-conflict institution-building, experiences that deeply shaped how I think about leadership, execution, and the relationship between systems and people.I have also worked in higher education, leadership development, and diaspora engagement, including roles that focused on mentoring future leaders, strengthening civic participation, and building more people-centered approaches to social change.What ties my work together is a systems-thinking approach, strong analytical judgment, cross-cultural fluency, and the ability to navigate complex stakeholder environments across sectors and institutions. I am particularly interested in work at the intersection of strategy, governance, institutional effectiveness, systems change, and mission-driven leadership.

Experience

1. Executive Director

   The Afghan-American Foundation

   Jan 2023 — Present · Washington, DC, US

   Co-founded and helped build the Afghan-American Foundation from the ground up during the aftermath of the Afghanistan evacuation and in a rapidly shifting U.S. immigration and policy environment. Lead the organization’s strategy, governance, institutional development, partnerships, fundraising, and cross-functional execution, while helping position AAF as a credible national voice and institution for Afghan-Americans.This work has involved responding to urgent community and policy realities while also building the structures, relationships, and long-term direction needed for durability and impact. A central part of my role has been creating space for Afghan-American expertise and lived experience to help shape the policies, programs, and public conversations that affect our communities.Key areas of work include: • Organizational strategy, governance, and operating development • Fundraising, partnerships, and institutional growth • Policy advocacy and stakeholder engagement • Public education, civic engagement, and community leadership • Building systems and structures for long-term sustainability

Education

• NYU Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service

  Global Public Policy and Management, Public Administration

  2016 — 2017

• University of the Pacific

  Bachelor of Arts (BA), Communication and International Relations

  2010 — 2014

• UCL

  Master's degree, Public Administration

  2017 — 2017

Skills

• Fundraising
• Social Media
• Social Entrepreneurship
• International Development
• Writing
• Community Outreach
• Community Development
• Ngos
• Program Management
• Budget Planning and Management
• Stablization
• Strategic Planning
• Editing
• Content Curation
• Program Evaluation
• Policy Writing
• Marketing
• Politics
• Policy Analysis
• International Relations
• Proposal Writing
• Crisis Communications
• Capacity Building
• Training
• Analysis
• Government
• Nonprofits
• Public Speaking
• Public Relations
• Research
• Microsoft Office
• Program Development
• Management
• Program Financial Management
• Strategic Communications
• Leadership
• Grant Writing
• Qualitative Research
• Event Planning
• Non-Profits