GPFA Appoints Two New Directors

June 10, 2004, New York – The Global Partnership for Afghanistan appointed two new members to its Board of Directors, Barbara Barrett, an attorney, and Omar Zakhilwal, PhD, an economist currently serving as senior advisor to Afghanistan’s Minister of Rural Reconstruction and Development.

“We are proud to add the talents of Barbara Barrett and Omar Zakhilwal to our Board,” said Dana Freyer, GPFA Co-Chair. “Ms. Barrett is an attorney with a great deal of experience in nonprofits in New York and the Midwest. Dr. Zakhilwal is deeply involved in a number of significant projects in Afghanistan and serves both in the government and as the Director of Afghanistan Center for Policy Development.”

Ms. Barrett is a retired lawyer who specialized in trust, estate and probate law. She is currently working with several non-profits, including The Metropolitan Opera, in the area of planned giving. Having recently moved to New York from the Midwest where she served on numerous non-profit boards, she is now serving as secretary of the board of the YWCA-NYC. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Iowa and her J.D. from Drake University.

Dr. Zakhilwal is also a member of the Governing Council of the Central Bank of Afghanistan, founding member and the president of the board of directors of Partnership Afghanistan Canada and a founding member and the chair of the start-up committee of the Canadian Engineers for the Reconstruction of Afghanistan. He has written numerous articles in English, Pashto and Dari on political, economic and social issues pertaining to Afghanistan for a number of Afghan and international publications, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Ottawa Citizen, Forum of Federation Quarterly and Human Rights Tribune. He presently resides in Kabul.