AMAR ICF provides humanitarian assistance to, and support for, communities.
OUR TEAM
AMAR EMPLOYS A SMALL TEAM IN LONDON TO HELP COORDINATE, RAISE FUNDS, PUBLICISE, AND SUPPORT THE OVERSEAS OPERATIONS.
Over the last 30 years, AMAR has employed thousands of local doctors & nurses and teachers to do what they know best in their own country. AMAR has an office in Basra, and presence in Baghdad, Erbil and Dohuk, to allow work across Iraq. AMAR’s staff work within their own communities, ensuring that local skills and capacity are developed and maintained, and allowing work in challenging security environments. The unique local knowledge of AMAR’s field team means that the services provided are always culturally appropriate and tailored to individual communities’ needs.
Andrew Methven, Managing Director
Andrew is the AMAR Chief of Staff, based in the London office. His responsibilities, as AMAR grows, are to lead the Staff Management Team, provide the link to the Board, and coordinate across the AMAR family, most importantly with the Field Team in Iraq. Andrew previously worked as Strategy & Commercial Director and Bid Team Leader for various International security firms, specialising in Iraq (including the Kurdistan Region), Afghanistan and Nigeria, and maritime security in the Indian Ocean and West Africa.
Prior to this he served in the British Army (The Life Guards) for 20 years. His tours included running a Reserve officer training unit in London, and various staff roles in the Ministry of Defence. He spent a very enjoyable 16 months on exchange with the Canadian Army, most of which was spent in the Balkans. His operational service includes the UN and NATO in Bosnia, and several tours of Iraq, which was his first exposure to reconstruction, development and the people of Basra.
Andrew’s first degree was in sciences from Cambridge. He holds Masters degrees from Cranfield, KCL and Imperial College Business School. He lives in London with his young family. His hobbies include ancient Greek history and playing the piano.
Canberk Sirmen, Head of Programmes
Canberk Sirmen is Head of Programmes at AMAR Foundation, where he leads the delivery of large-scale CSR initiatives in Iraq. He also serves as Honorary Parliamentary Assistant to Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne.
Canberk holds a degree in Finance from Bocconi University and previously worked as an Energy M&A Advisor at PwC Milan. In addition, he acts as an adviser to Logiturc, a commercial real estate development company based in Istanbul.
Dr. Ali Jawad, Iraq Operations Director
Dr. A. Jawad is an experienced medical practitioner and plays key role in driving the quality of AMAR’s work in Iraq. His medical experience is summarized below:
- Specialized Rheumatologist in AL shaheed Khaled hospital Erbil 2011-2014.
- High diploma in Rheumatology from Ternopol medical university, Ukraine 2009-2011.
- General practitioner in Baghdad and Basra 1998-2009.
- General Practitioner in Mesan 1996-1998.
- Post qualification he worked as doctor in Ibn Majed hospital in Basra.
- He graduated from the college of Medicine, University of Basra 1993.
James Hunter-Young, Project Officer
James Hunter-Young graduated from Durham University with a First-Class degree in Modern Languages and Cultures, specialising in Arabic and Spanish. As part of the degree, he spent 7 months abroad living in the Middle East developing strong linguistic skills and deep intercultural awareness. James’ experience has broadened his understanding of how to strengthen bilateral relations and engage diaspora communities. In addition, he has been a volunteer English teacher for displaced children in Jordan and taken up other volunteering roles.
Ashley Goodall, Marketing Consultant
As MD of Saatchi & Saatchi Design, Ashley ran large branding projects for clients such as Barclays Capital, Raifeissen bank, The Post office, A1 telecom Austria, Head and Shoulders and T Mobile. He is a Marketing professional with expertise in brand positioning, brand identity, digital communications, PR, business development and digital entrepreneurs. As head of Business development and Marketing at Fitch (WPP) he also developed an international range of clients in retail, branding and communications.
Originally a Marketing graduate at EMI records, Ashley signed diverse acts as Iron Maiden, Talk Talk and Curiosity Killed the Cat, before moving onto creative marketing recruitment and a directorship at Pricejamieson in the 90’s. Finally settling in directorships in branding and communication at Marketplace/Lloyd Northover, Fitch and Saatchi & Saatchi Design since 1999.
Ashley also works on Ukraine Britain Business Council and AMAR Foundation and has worked with IBBC since 2015, working on communications, the Tech and member forums and conference marketing.