Dr Orzala Nemat is an internationally-known Afghan scholar & think tank leader. She is an expert in political ethnography, holding a PhD in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and an MSc in Development Planning from the University College London (UCL).

Between 2016 and 2022, Dr Nemat served as the Director of Afghanistan's top research think tank, the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU). Prior to this, she worked briefly as the Afghan President’s advisor on sub-national governance.

An expert in political ethnography, and with a PhD in Development Studies, Dr Nemat has founded, led and worked with various grassroots, national and international organizations. Dr Nemat was the acting chairperson of Open Society Foundation's Afghanistan Advisory board in Afghanistan until July 2021 and is currently a Trustee for Afghanaid, a British charity working in Afghanistan. Dr Nemat is a Chevening Scholar from 2006, was selected as a Young Global Leader at the World Forum in 2009, Yale Greenberg World Fellows in 2008 and is a recipient of the Isabel Ferror Award for Women’s Education and the Amnesty International Award for Humanitarian Aid to Children and Women in the year 2000. 

Dr Nemat is currently engaged in various advisory and research projects on Afghanistan’s humanitarian and development situation and is a regular speaker on international media and at conferences in regard to Afghanistan.