Roya Rahmani
Vice-Chair Public Policy, Delphos; Former Ambassador of Afghanistan to the United States
Ambassador Rahmani joined Delphos as Vice Chair for Public Policy, advising dialogue for development growth among public, private, and institutional stakeholders. She is a former diplomat with over two decades of experience working with governments, nongovernmental organizations, and multilateral institutions. Her main areas of focus include human rights, women's empowerment, and education. In 2018, Amb. Rahmani was appointed Ambassador to the United States and was the first woman to hold this position. She also served as non-resident ambassador to Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic. She was Afghanistan’s first female ambassador to Indonesia, first ever ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and non-resident ambassador to Singapore.Amb. Rahmani has been honored with several accolades including the Best Human Rights Activist Award by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, “The People’s Ambassador” by Tatler Indonesia as well as recognition by the Alliance for Peacebuilding for her efforts to create an inclusive peace process. Amb. Rahmani is a Senior Advisor at the Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center. She also serves as a distinguished fellow at the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace, and Security, as well as a senior fellow for international security at the New America Foundation. Amb. Rahmani holds a bachelor’s degree in software engineering from McGill University and a master’s degree in public administration and international law from Columbia University.
