Node Members
Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed
Director SAFN Maldives
Dr. Rasheeda Mohamed Didi
Senior Fellow
Mimrah Ghafoor
Associate Fellow
Director SAFN Maldives
Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed
Director SAFN Maldives
Ambassador Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed is the Maldives Ambassador to the United States of America.
He was appointed to the post of Foreign Secretary by His Excellency President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on 22 November 2018. An accomplished diplomat, Ghafoor has served the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Maldives, both at headquarters and in a number of foreign postings.
Starting his career as a Program Officer in 1983, he has held the post of Assistant Undersecretary, Assistant Director, Political Affairs and Deputy Director and Director, Foreign Relations, at the Ministry. In 1997, Ghafoor was deputed to serve in the Secretariat of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) as Director from Maldives. Following his 3-year tenure at the SAARC Secretariat, Ghafoor was appointed Director General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2000, and was later promoted to the rank of Assistant Executive Director in 2005 and then to Executive Director in 2007.
During his long and distinguished career in the Maldives foreign service, Ghafoor also served as Counsellor and then Deputy High Commissioner of Maldives to Sri Lanka and later as Deputy High Commissioner of Maldives to Malaysia. He was appointed as the Permanent Representative of the Maldives to the United Nations Offices in Geneva in 2008 by then President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, concurrently serving as the Permanent Representative of Maldives to the World Trade Organisation. Following the change of Government in 2008, the newly elected President Mohamed Nasheed appointed Ghafoor as the Permanent Representative of Maldives to the United Nations in 2009, concurrently accredited as the Ambassador to the United States of America and Non-Resident High Commissioner to Canada. After the unprecedented and controversial resignation of President Nasheed in 2012, Ghafoor stepped down from his post.
From 2013 till 2014, Ghafoor served as a Consultant at the Foreign Relations Department of the People’s Majlis (Parliament), aiding the legislature in fostering international cooperation and engagement. During the period 2014-2017, Ghafoor served as Director, Special Projects at ADK Enterprises Pvt Ltd, and as the Head of External Relations at the newly established Tree Top Hospital in Hulhumale, gaining experience in the private sector. An individual with a keenness for academia, Ghafoor also lectured at the Maldives National University from 2016 to 2018 in the subjects of Political Science and International Relations.
Ghafoor graduated from the University of Tasmania, Australia, in 1984 with a B.A(Hons.) in Political Science, and was awarded an M.A in International Relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, USA in 1988.
Born on 20 November 1959, Ghafoor is married to Mariyam Khalida. They have a son and a daughter.
He was appointed to the post of Foreign Secretary by His Excellency President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on 22 November 2018. An accomplished diplomat, Ghafoor has served the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Maldives, both at headquarters and in a number of foreign postings.
Starting his career as a Program Officer in 1983, he has held the post of Assistant Undersecretary, Assistant Director, Political Affairs and Deputy Director and Director, Foreign Relations, at the Ministry. In 1997, Ghafoor was deputed to serve in the Secretariat of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) as Director from Maldives. Following his 3-year tenure at the SAARC Secretariat, Ghafoor was appointed Director General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2000, and was later promoted to the rank of Assistant Executive Director in 2005 and then to Executive Director in 2007.
During his long and distinguished career in the Maldives foreign service, Ghafoor also served as Counsellor and then Deputy High Commissioner of Maldives to Sri Lanka and later as Deputy High Commissioner of Maldives to Malaysia. He was appointed as the Permanent Representative of the Maldives to the United Nations Offices in Geneva in 2008 by then President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, concurrently serving as the Permanent Representative of Maldives to the World Trade Organisation. Following the change of Government in 2008, the newly elected President Mohamed Nasheed appointed Ghafoor as the Permanent Representative of Maldives to the United Nations in 2009, concurrently accredited as the Ambassador to the United States of America and Non-Resident High Commissioner to Canada. After the unprecedented and controversial resignation of President Nasheed in 2012, Ghafoor stepped down from his post.
From 2013 till 2014, Ghafoor served as a Consultant at the Foreign Relations Department of the People’s Majlis (Parliament), aiding the legislature in fostering international cooperation and engagement. During the period 2014-2017, Ghafoor served as Director, Special Projects at ADK Enterprises Pvt Ltd, and as the Head of External Relations at the newly established Tree Top Hospital in Hulhumale, gaining experience in the private sector. An individual with a keenness for academia, Ghafoor also lectured at the Maldives National University from 2016 to 2018 in the subjects of Political Science and International Relations.
Ghafoor graduated from the University of Tasmania, Australia, in 1984 with a B.A(Hons.) in Political Science, and was awarded an M.A in International Relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, USA in 1988.
Born on 20 November 1959, Ghafoor is married to Mariyam Khalida. They have a son and a daughter.
Fellows at SAFN
Dr. Rasheeda Mohamed Didi
Dr. Rasheeda Mohamed Didi, a member of the Higher Education Council, works as an independent academic and resource person. For 8 years, she worked as a part time lecturer at the Maldives National University, where she had taught Political Science and International Relations subjects, such as Foreign Policy, Democracy, Introduction to Political Science (Civics), as well as Maldivian History. Currently, she is working as a Master of Education thesis supervisor at Mandhu College.
She has a Master of Arts Degree and a Ph.D in Political Science from Temple University, Philadelphia, USA, with a concentration on International Relations. Apart from teaching and lecturing, Dr. Didi has worked for the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Liberia as a Civil Affairs Officer/County Support Team Facilitator, working with local government and UN officials in Liberia. She also was in charge of the Research Center at the Commonwealth Joint Office for Permanent Missions to the UN, in New York, USA. Previously, she had worked as the Principal of Aminiya School and, as a history teacher at Science Education Centre as well as at Aminiya School. Over the years, she has presented many papers at conferences, but, more recently, she is concentrating on South Asian and Indian Ocean issues, particularly, relating to the Maldives.
She has a Master of Arts Degree and a Ph.D in Political Science from Temple University, Philadelphia, USA, with a concentration on International Relations. Apart from teaching and lecturing, Dr. Didi has worked for the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Liberia as a Civil Affairs Officer/County Support Team Facilitator, working with local government and UN officials in Liberia. She also was in charge of the Research Center at the Commonwealth Joint Office for Permanent Missions to the UN, in New York, USA. Previously, she had worked as the Principal of Aminiya School and, as a history teacher at Science Education Centre as well as at Aminiya School. Over the years, she has presented many papers at conferences, but, more recently, she is concentrating on South Asian and Indian Ocean issues, particularly, relating to the Maldives.
Mimrah Ghafoor
Mimrah Abdul Ghafoor is a Maldivian National possessing a Master of Arts in International Relations from the University of St Andrews. Most recently, he worked as speechwriter to the President of the General Assembly in United Nations Headquarters, in New York City, where the Maldives' incumbent Foreign Minister, Abdulla Shahid, chaired over the 76th Session.
From December 2018 - September 2022, Mimrah worked in the country's President's Office as an Assistant Director, and worked in foreign relations, communications and national security, before shifting to the President's Office from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he served as a Foreign Service Officer from December 2017-December 2018. Prior to working in government, Mimrah worked in the NGO sector, at Transparency Maldives and Advocating the Rights of Children, where he handled projects relevant to strengthening the country's anti-corruption regime and strengthening the country's child rights framework, respectively
From December 2018 - September 2022, Mimrah worked in the country's President's Office as an Assistant Director, and worked in foreign relations, communications and national security, before shifting to the President's Office from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he served as a Foreign Service Officer from December 2017-December 2018. Prior to working in government, Mimrah worked in the NGO sector, at Transparency Maldives and Advocating the Rights of Children, where he handled projects relevant to strengthening the country's anti-corruption regime and strengthening the country's child rights framework, respectively