Brief biography of Mr. Muhammad Maududur Rashid Safdar

Mr. Muhammad Maududur Rashid SAFDAR

Managing Director, Palli Daridro Bimochon Foundation (PDBF)

Mr. Muhammad Maududur Rashid SAFDAR joined Palli Daridro Bimochon Foundation (PDBF) on 21 December, 2020 as its Managing Director. PDBF is one of the largest state-owned micro finance institutions under the Rural Development & Cooperative Division, Ministry of LGRD & Cooperatives. He has been serving as the Honorary Secretary General of Rural Thinkers, a newly formed Bangladesh-based think tank that brings together academics, practitioners, advocates and activists particularly interested in rethinking rurality: the rural idyll, countryside protection and urban containment.

Mr. Safdar, is a former Secretary to the Government, who has altogether 35 years of experience in public service. He left a para-statal bank to join the Bangladesh Civil Service in 1988 as one of its foremost members in order of merit. In the same year of his induction into the Civil Service, he was judged to be the Best Assistant Commissioner by the government for his contribution to Land Reforms Program.

He held field and policy-level appointments in various organizations, including in a Ministry/ Division, a Department, a Commission, a Tribunal, a Diplomatic Mission, a Corporation, an Academy, and a Board. He served as the Director of three different organizations: Bangladesh Television (BTV), Department of Environment (DoE), and Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC).

He was the Director General of Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD).Later he was made the Director General of the Bangladesh Rural Development Board (BRDB) in the rank and status of a Secretary.

He served on the Governing Boards of Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD), Cumilla and several other leading organizations active in the field of rural development, including: Rural Development Academy (RDA), Bogura, Bangabandhu Academy for Poverty Alleviation & Rural Development (BAPARD), and Small Farmers Development Foundation (SFDF)

He also served on the Trustee Board of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) and the Governing Boards of Bnagladesh Parjatan Corporation, National Institute of Local Government (NILG), Bangladesh Krishi (Agricultural) Bank, Palli Sonchoy Bank (Rural Savings Bank), and Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC). He was also the Chair of the Editorial Board of “ The Journal of Rural Development” (ISSN 1019-0341) and Chief Advisor of the Editorial Board of “ Palli Unnayan” , annual Bangla journal of Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD).

Mr. Safdar was elected as the Chairperson of the Technical Committee (TC) of the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP) and the Co-Chair of the Technical Programme Committee of the African-Asian Rural Development Organization (AARDO) in 2017.

While in the US during 1995-1996, Mr. Safdar served as an Expert Member of UN Efficiency Board at the UN Headquarters where he was awarded Recognition Pin by the UN Secretary General for his contribution to Efficiency Review and UN Reform Process.

Mr. Safdar also served as a diplomat in Europe. He was the Head of Economic and Commercial Wings in Bangladesh Embassy in Brussels, Belgium, which was also accredited to Switzerland, Luxembourg and European Union at large. During his stay at the Mission during 2003 to 2008, he could marshal and maintain the largest aid portfolio and secure largest inflow of export proceeds and Trade-Related Technical Assistance (TRTA) for Bangladesh from the European Union.

He was a Regent’s Scholar at the University of Minnesota, USA and obtained Master of Liberal Studies from the University with highest distinction, i.e., Summa Cum Laude. He was also a Hubert H. Humphrey (Fulbright) Fellow in the University of California at Davis (in 1995) and University of Minnesota (1995-1996) where he was awarded California Gold and another Summa Cum Laude respectively for his outstanding academic achievement. He also holds Masters (1982) and Bachelors (Honours) (1981) Degrees in Social Science (Public Administration) from University of Dhaka. Earlier, he was awarded Scholastic Distinction in the Banking Diploma Examination and was conferred DAIBB (Diplomaed Associate of the Institute of Bankers, Dhaka, Bangladesh) (1988).

Aside from these, he was a Fellow of Vrije Universitiet Brussel (VUB) in Brussels, Belgium , a UNCRD Fellow at the University of Boras at Boras, Sweden and an ADB Leadership Fellow at the Korea Development Institute (KDI) in Seoul, Korea.

Mr. Safdar is a Master Trainer and conducted classes/ training sessions at different leading institutions of the country, including: University of Dhaka, BPATC, RPATC, NAPD, BARD, NILG, RDA, BAPARD, BIAM, LATC, BRDTI, etc.

In other countries, he led academic sessions at different institutions, including: University of California at Davis, University of Minnesota, and University of California at Los Angeles in the US; Vrje Universiteit Brussel in Belgium; University of Borås in Sweden; University of Leiden and University of Amsterdam in The Netherlands.

Mr. Safdar’s academic background and professional affiliations offered him an all-embracing and comprehensive exposure in Good Governance, Strategic Planning, Environmental Conservation, Land and Waterscape Management, Tourism and Hospitality Management as well as Integrated Rural Development (IRD).

His credentials vividly portray the image of an inspired civil servant-cum-development functionary. Although his earlier tenure of office ended in August 2020, he continued to pursue excellence in his own sphere of critical thinking and acting, and graciously seek a leitmotif animating change in public service delivery.