Amjad Ahmad is director and resident senior fellow of empowerME at the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. empowerME focuses on shaping innovative investments to empower entrepreneurs, women, and the private sector in the Middle East. Ahmad is also managing partner of the venture capital firm Precinct Partners and serves on the boards of Homzmart, Tapal Tea, RSA Global, Mr. Usta, and The Luxury Closet. He was recently appointed to the board of Amideast, a leading U.S. nonprofit organization engaged in international education, training, and development activities in the Middle East and North Africa.

Based in the United Arab Emirates for 15 years prior to moving to Washington, DC, Ahmad has collaborated with business leaders and entrepreneurs to build leading companies in the Middle East. Through his work as a venture capital and growth investor, Amjad established two investment firms in the region that provided over $1 billion in funding to over 50 companies in sectors ranging from technology and education to health care and finance. During the past five years, Ahmad has focused his investments on entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology. Ahmad holds a master’s degree in international affairs with a concentration in international finance and economics from Columbia University and is a graduate of the general management program at Harvard Business School.