Shoaib Sultan Khan

Who is Shoaib Sultan Khan?

Shoaib Sultan Khan is widely recognized as one of the pioneers of rural development programmes in Pakistan.

He served for 59 years in various development organizations including Aga Khan Foundation, UNICEF, UNDP, and Rural Support Programmes Network. As a CSP Officer, he worked with the Government of Pakistan for 25 years, later on he served Geneva-based Aga Khan Foundation for 12 years and UNICEF and UNDP for 14 years. Since his retirement, he has been involved with the Rural Support Programmes of Pakistan full-time, on voluntary basis.

Shoaib Sultan is a recipient of numerous awards including the distinguished the United Nations Environment Programme Global 500 Award in 1989, the Sitara-i-Imtiaz in 1990, the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1992, the WWF Conservation Medal in 1994, "Man of the Year" Rotary International Gold Medal in 2005, Sitara-e-Eisaar and Hilal-i-Imtiaz by the President of Pakistan in 2006. In 2009 he was elected as Senior Ashoka Fellow. He has penned numerous research papers and books and is considered as an authority in the field of rural development. In 2009, he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for "Unleashing the power and potential of the poor".