Meet Our Team
Born from a multidisciplinary collective of policy experts, development practitioners, and academics — with roots stretching from Damascus to Oxford — SyriaDev embodies a unique fusion of deep local knowledge and international best practices.
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The Syria Development Centre operates through this dynamic network of Fellows, experts, and policy advisors, anchored by our central research and analysis hub. This structure allows us to be agile, responsive, and deeply embedded in the contexts where we work, ensuring that our insights are not only academically sound but also practically relevant and politically astute.
Our Strategy and Management Team
Ammar Sabouni
Ammar Sabouni is the Founder Director of the Syria Development Centre, Partner, and current Practice Lead for Health. He is an MPP degree holder in Public Policy from the University of Oxford concentrating on post-conflict reform in fragile settings. He is a psychiatrist in the UK, academic, and public health consultant. His interests range across disciplines including health system reconstruction, public health, humanitarianism and academia. He brings strong methodological expertise in systematic reviews and bibliometric analysis and has previously worked for Cochrane UK, Chatham House, the University of York, The Lancet - American University of Beirut Commission on Syria, the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford, and the International Growth Centre at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).
Alnarjes Harba
Alnarjes Harba is the Executive Manager at the Syria Development Centre. She is an MSc degree holder in Global Health in Conflict from St. George's, University of London with a background in management graduating from Southern New Hampshire University. Alnarjes is experienced in coordinating community mental health and education programs. She has been awarded the Hansen Fellowship on International Cooperation and Conflict Resolution from the Hansen Leadership Institute at San Diego University.
Alaadin Zaza
Ala’a Zaza (Alaaddin) is the Manager of the Syria Development Centre and an expert in international development and education, with over 15 years of experience leading stabilisation and development initiatives in crisis-affected contexts including Syria, and Yemen. He is currently a PhD candidate at University College London (UCL), focusing on education governance and its role in development in Syria. He also holds a Master’s degree in Special Education from Qatar University. Ala’a has held senior leadership roles with organisations such as Save the Children International, Chemonics International, and Adam Smith International. His positions have included Chief of Party and Senior Advisor, where he led large-scale, complex programmes across the MENA region. His core expertise includes scaling the impact of development solutions, strengthening education systems , advancing policy reform, and delivering education in emergencies and conflict-sensitive contexts.
Mhd Hassan Idelbi
Mhd Hassan Idelbi is Practice Lead for Governance at the Syria Development Centre. A seasoned expert in institution building for public, private, and hybrid bodies. Hassan has a proven track record of supporting governmental and semi-governmental bodies in institutional development, advising on complex restructuring initiatives, and cultivating effective institutional leadership. His hands-on experience in organisational development within the Syrian humanitarian response is further enriched by his academic pursuits; Hassan is a PhD student and holds a Master’s degree in Management and Organisation from Marmara University, complementing his background in medicine. He has spearheaded pioneering and innovative solutions to address significant educational and economic challenges faced by Syrian refugees and IDPs through institutional strengthening. Hassan possesses strong methodological expertise in qualitatively exploring the experiences of Syrian local humanitarian NGOs, utilizing institutional logics and institutional entrepreneurship perspectives. This allows him to deliver comprehensive diagnostic and prognostic assessments, offering tactical and strategic recommendations to effectively address challenges within complex organizational ecosystems and drive impactful institutional growth.
Our Areas of Practice
Kouteba Alkhalil
Kouteba Al-Khalil is the Practice Lead for Education at the Syria Development Centre. He is a specialist in education planning, child protection, and safeguarding, with extensive experience in strategy development, capacity building, and programme management across emergency, early recovery, and development settings.
He has held key advisory roles, including with the Aid Fund for Syria (AFS) and the FCDO-funded Syria Education Programme with Chemonics International. Kouteba has played a central role in establishing education and safeguarding systems in Syria and the MENA region. His expertise covers education policy and governance, protection in emergencies, early childhood development, social-emotional learning, resilience, and mental health and psychosocial support.
Yamama Bdaiwi
Yamama Bdaiwi is Fellow at the Syria Development Centre. She completed her master’s degree at the Nuffield Department of Health Sciences, University of Oxford, and wrote her thesis on Medical Education and Health Professional Training in Syria. She is a co-lead for education for the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funded King’s College, London project: Research for Health Systems Strengthening in northern Syria (R4HSSS). She is a member of the Conflict and Health Research Group, and a GP Trainee in West Yorkshire and the Humber.
Abdulkarim Ekzayez
Abdulkarim Ekzayez is Senior Fellow at the Syria Development Centre. He has a PhD in Health Systems from King's College London, MSc in Epidemiology from LSHTM with a clinical experience in neurosurgery from the University of Aleppo. Abdulkarim is a Health System Expert at the Centre for Conflict and Health Research at King's College London and a Co-Investigator of a four-year NIHR funded project, Research for Health System Strengthening in Northern Syria (R4HSSS). He specialises in health systems strengthening, humanitarian health, health security, epidemiology, and building health research capacity in conflict settings. His publications span over 40 academic journal articles and book chapters. His 15 years experience includes academic, policy and humanitarian health programmes for Save the Children International, Expertise France, Chatham House among others with involvement in polio eradication programmes, primary health care, health information systems and health governance initiatives.
Fadi Alhalabi
Fadi Alhalabi is Senior Fellow at the Syria Development Centre. He is a master’s degree holder in Health Management and Policy from the American University of Beirut with a background in neurosurgery. Fadi’s training in neurosurgery was interrupted by his displacement to Lebanon. Fadi established the Multi Aid Programs (MAPs) organisation which has pioneered innovative and sustainable solutions to long-term education and health issues facing Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Turkey, and Syria. This impact resulted from the labour laws that limit Fadi’s employment as a healthcare worker. With MAPs, he leads refugee camps children to international robotics competitions, runs schools and healthcare centres providing employment to Syrian refugee teachers and healthcare workers as well as incubates local refugee-led social enterprises for funding the schools and centres.
Hani Fakhani
Hani Fakhani is Senior Fellow at the Syria Development Centre. He is an architect, urban practitioner, researcher, and graduate of University College London. Hani holds an MSc degree from the Development Planning Unit at the University College London where he researched the interlinks between reconstruction, governance, and peace. His work is focused on housing and reconstruction in Syria and other post-conflict settings through research and practice. As a researcher, he has been part of programs and published articles tackling topics including reconstruction policies, displacement, and urbanism in conflict with several organisations and research centres, including, GIZ, ESCWA, AUB, and Carnegie centre. As a practitioner, he is the managing director and co-founder of Sakan Housing Communities Sakan Housing Communities tackling social and economic recovery in Syria through strategic affordable housing programs.
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Omer Abdrabbuh
Omer Abdrabbuh is part of the social research team at the Syria Development Centre. Currently, he is pursuing a residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern in the USA, having graduated from Istanbul University CerrahpaÅŸa Medical School. With a passion for volunteering and leadership, Omer co-founded and served as the president of MedX, a medical student assembly dedicated to build distinguished, scientifically influential, and socially effective young medical students in Turkiye. He is the coordinator of the medical education working stream of NIHR funded project, Research for Health System Strengthening in Northern Syria (R4HSSS) and was a co-author of research papers focused on rebuilding the medical education system and enhancing research capacity in conflict zones. Omer actively volunteers with the Multi Aid Programs (MAPs), and the Turkish Red Crescent and leads initiatives focused on improving refugee access to education in Syria and Turkiye.
Leen Al-Rabbat
Leen Al-Rabbat is a Research Assistant at the Syria Development Centre. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, with a strong commitment to advancing political, social and economic development in the Middle East. Leen earned her undergraduate degree in International Politics, with a minor in Arabic, from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in Qatar in 2021. Her professional experience spans research and consulting, including roles at Qatar University, Qatar’s Ministry of Culture and Strategy Hub Consultancy. Her work is driven by a deep interest in post-conflict nation-building, particularly in Syria and she is dedicated to supporting the development of more just, effective and resilient governance systems across the region.
Alaa Alsayed Ahmad
Alaa Alsayed Ahmad is a Research Assistant at the Syria Development Centre and a PhD researcher in Social Policy at Anglia Ruskin University. Her doctoral research explores the employment integration of highly skilled Syrian refugees in the UK labour market. She holds an MSc in Accounting, Finance and Strategic Investment from Newcastle University and a BA in Accounting from Damascus University. Alaa has experience in applied qualitative research, including survey design, in-depth interviews and community-based engagement with refugee populations in the UK. She has contributed to refugee advocacy efforts through her work with Human Rights Watch and led educational initiatives for displaced communities. Her research interests focus on refugee integration, labour market access and inclusive social policy in contexts of displacement.
Adnan Hadid
Adnan Hadid is a Senior Fellow at the Syria Development Centre. He is a consultant Neonatologist at King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh. With over 15 years of clinical experience in tertiary neonatal care, Adnan is a seasoned expert in managing critically ill neonates, especially preterm infants requiring advanced respiratory support, including high-frequency oscillatory ventilation. He leads multidisciplinary NICU teams, drives quality improvement initiatives, and serves as a mentor in neonatal resuscitation. Holding a Doctor of Medicine from Damascus University and specialty certification in neonatology from the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties, Adnan complements his clinical work with a strong academic and research portfolio. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications on neonatal outcomes, perinatal COVID-19 impacts, and systemic inflammatory syndromes in neonates. His interests also extend to neonatal safety, healthcare quality, and medical education—fields in which he holds additional diplomas. A recognised contributor to neonatal healthcare advancement in Saudi Arabia, Adnan continues to shape clinical practice through evidence-based care, education, and leadership in research and professional forums.