3254 35th Street Astoria

New York, NY 11106

Tel: +1-917-617-2728
Email:
firas_masri@hotmail.com

Firas Masri
Nationality: Irish and Jordanian citizen
Date of birth: 3 April 1971

Experience January 2010 - July 2010 Joint Mediation Support Team (JMST)
Khartoum, SUDAN
Political Adviser
* Took a lead role in organizing civil society consultations in Southern Darfur
to prepare participants for the Qatar-sponsored peace negotiations on Darfur in
Doha.
* Organized the substantive and logistical aspects of civil society participant
in Doha.
* Facilitated working sessions on issues such as security arrangements, power sh
aring, truth and reconciliation and disarmament for civil society participants i
n Doha.
* Briefed representatives from civil society organizations on the Doha process a
nd assisted them to develop positions and platforms to be presented at the Peace
Talks.
* Acted as the focal point for the Arab Nomadic Militias, assisting in their sub
stantive preparation for participating in the Doha negotiations, including throu
gh building their capacity on the process, assisting them to set their prioritie
s and demands and facilitating their interaction with other stakeholders such as
the North Sudan DDR Commissioner, State Governors, etc.
* Assisted Doha participants to prepare concept notes, talking points, statement
s and position papers.
* Drafted statements and press releases in Arabic for the JMST Team
March 2008-December 2009 UN Development Programme (UNDP) Khartoum,
SUDAN
Communications Client Officer
Threat and Risk Mapping Analysis Project-TRMA
* Oversaw communications between the Threat Mapping and Risk Analysis project an
d Government of National Unity (GONU) counterparts. The project is aimed at unde
rtaking comprehensive geo-referencing of threats to human security to promote co
ordinated response to those threats in support of the Comprehensive Peace Agreem
ent, Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement and Darfur Peace Agreement.
* Provided routine political analysis to members of the Threat Mapping team, clo
sely following political developments in Sudan and their relation to project imp
lementation.
* Represented the project in the Sudanese media, including radio and television
programmes and interviews to print media.
* Produced public information materials for the consumption of governmental coun
terparts.
* Undertook field missions to lead the mapping process and engage community lead
ers and local politicians at state and locality level.
* Liaised between the various governmental entities engaged the Threat Mapping p
rocess, advocating for better information gathering and analysis in order to inc
rease the effectiveness of development interventions.
* Facilitated improved understanding of Sudanese politics amongst the Threat Map
ping team, which was gleaned from continuous engagement with governmental partne
rs.
* Promoted increased understanding of the UN's current and potential role in the
context of Sudan's peace agreements amongst national stakeholders at local and
national levels.
* Produced a database of governmental counterparts and institutions for the proj
ect.
* Took a lead role in capacity building component to handover project to governm
ent officials, including through organizing and implementing training workshops
and ongoing on-the-job mentoring for government counterparts.
2007-2008 Storm Investment Co. Khar
toum, SUDAN
Coordinating Manager
* Managed the daily operations of the Sudan office of a multi-national property
development firm, including overseeing the internal and external communications
and marketing strategies.
* Advised Sudanese partners and government officials on international best pract
ice standards for project design and development.
* Assisted in conceptualizing and implementing change management measures to bri
ng the company in line with international standards.
* Coordinated communication between company headquarters in Dubai and Sudanese o
fficials regarding construction projects in Sudan, including negotiating memoran
dums of understanding with the Sudanese government and final contracts with part
ners.
* Liaised with partners in other Storm offices in China, Australia, the United K
ingdom and the United States to ensure that project feasibility studies and desi
gns are complete and ready for implementation.
* Recruited new clients for the company in Sudan from the local and national gov
ernments, as well as international and national private actors.
1998- 2006 Embassy of Palestine
Cairo, EGYPT
First Secretary, Political Affairs
* Provided routine political analysis to the Ambassador's office based on in-dep
th examinations of current events and trends in the Middle-East, advising on pol
itical, social and economic issues.
* Influenced policy movements in regional forums, such as the Arab League, by pr
oducing analysis, reports and strategy papers for the consumption of Arab diplom
ats in Cairo.
* Participated in Arab League meetings on political, economic and humanitarian i
ssues.
* Acted as the Media Focal Point in the embassy, preparing statements and briefi
ngs for the international and national press, responding to queries from the med
ia.
* Translated, analyzed and produced briefings on international research and repo
rts on the political, economic and social issues of relevance.
* Represented the embassy in numerous local and international conferences includ
ing:
o The United Nations Seminar on Palestinian Development Prospects (Cairo, June 2
000); Prepared an economic and political background paper on the situation in Pa
lestine.
o The Afro-Asian Conference (Cairo, May 2003).
* Organized visits from high-level delegations, assisting the Ambassador with su
bstantive and logistic preparations.
* Supported the Ambassador during visits from delegations from other countries,
including through providing talking points, simultaneous translation and other s
upport as required.
* Attended receptions and formal dinners hosted by other Member States.
* Managed and monitored the Ambassador's front office and its employees.
1993-1997 Arab Insurance Company A
mman, JORDAN
Unit Insurance Manager
* Trained insurance agents on marketing techniques for life, marine and health i
nsurance.
* Oversaw the follow up of staff trained, including through monitoring their ach
ievements and sales volumes.
Education 2009-2011 University of Phoenix Phoeni
x, AZ
* Masters of Management in Public Administration
* Expected March 2011
1991-1994 State University of New York Saratoga
Springs, NY
* Bachelor of Science with a double major in Political Science and Marketing.
* Coursework focused on middle-east conflicts and the Palestinian-Israeli confli
ct in particular.
* Final project paper on analysis of Thomas Friedman's From Beirut to Jerusalem.
1989-1991 Frederick Institute of Technology Nicosia, CYPRUS
* Higher Diploma in Business Administration (Marketing).
* Enrolled in a Masters program, MPA , University of Phoenix , Arizona
Skills
* Native Arabic speaker, fluent written and verbal English.
* Macromedia, PHP, Microsoft Office, movie maker, completed Windows Applications
course (Amman, 1993).
Interests Management, international travel, jogging, swimming.
References
Kenneth Gluck
Chief of Staff
Joint AU-UN Mediation Support Team (JMST)
Khartoum, SUDAN
Email: kenny.gluck@gmail.com
Maximo Halty
TRMA Senior Technical Adviser
UNDP
Khartoum, SUDAN
Email: maximo.halty@undp.org