Md. Zillur Rahman

Serving on the Advisory Board of SSD Academy, this development strategist brings over 9 years of dedicated experience supporting rights-based development, skills generation, and climate-resilience initiatives across humanitarian and vulnerable communities in Bangladesh. With an extensive background coordinating flagship UNDP and a2i programmes, the Advisory Board provides vital strategic insight into youth employment frameworks, gender-inclusive programming, government system strengthening, and multi-stakeholder collaboration.

A dynamic development practitioner and program coordinator with over 9 years of proven experience advancing community-driven, gender-responsive, and inclusive development initiatives in Bangladesh. Bringing specialized expertise in youth engagement, livelihood generation, and climate-vulnerable community development, the advisor plays a key role in guiding SSD Academy's program strategy, stakeholder relations, and institutional sustainability.

With an established career within UNDP Bangladesh and the Aspire to Innovate (a2i) ecosystem, the advisor has managed large-scale skills and employment generation initiatives, tracked evidence-based outcomes, and built strong operational bridges between local CSOs, government stakeholders, and donor frameworks. In an advisory role, they provide high-level guidance on program design, participatory approaches, work plan development, and sustainable livelihood pathways for youth and marginalized groups.

Key Strategic Focus Areas

• Skills & Employment Generation: Advising on market-aligned vocational frameworks, youth employability strategies, and public-private linkage systems.
• Gender Equality & Social Inclusion (GESI): Providing strategic direction to ensure training programs actively integrate women, youth-led groups, and marginalized populations.
• Climate Resilience & Livelihoods: Supporting community-led adaptation initiatives and sustainable livelihood models in climate-vulnerable and coastal regions.
• Programme Planning & Donor Alignment: Offering technical counsel on monitoring, evidence-based reporting, work planning, and multi-stakeholder governance aligned with national and UNDP standards.

Distinguished Career Experience

• Coordinator (ISEC Project) – ISEC Project, UNDP Bangladesh (January 2025 – December 2025)
• Coordinator (Skills & Employment Generation) – Aspire to Innovate (a2i), UNDP Bangladesh (January 2024 – December 2024)
• Programme Assistant – UNDP Bangladesh (June 2020 – December 2023)
• Research Assistant – Access to Information (a2i) Programme-II, Prime Minister’s Office & UNDP Bangladesh (February 2017 – May 2020)
• Lecturer of Chemistry & English – Tongi Crystal College (November 2014 – November 2016)

Core Advisory Competencies

• Project Planning, Monitoring & Progress Tracking (UNDP Frameworks)
• Skills Development, Youth Engagement & Employment Generation
• Gender-Responsive Community Mobilization & Grassroots Institution Strengthening
• Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue (Government, Donors, CSOs & Youth Groups)