Abdel-Rahman El Mahdi, is a Sudanese national with over 20 years of experience in international development mostly anchored in organizational management and programming and with thematic/technical expertise in areas of in peacebuilding and human security, civic engagement and democratic transformation. He is currently serving as the President of the Sudanese Development Initiative(SUDIA), a nongovernmental organization that he founded and that works to achieve greater stability, development, and good governance in Sudan.
Having served on multiple senior positions and assignments with organizations in the Africa region, El Mahdi has a well-developed understanding and appreciation of the wider governance, policy and institutional dimensions that impact his work and the lives of ordinary people. Especially as these might relate to peace and development in his own country. He sits on leadership positions within several national/regional networks that include the Confederation of Sudanese Civil Society Organizations, African Democracy Forum, and the Arab Working Group for Media Monitoring. El-Mahdi is a Fellow of the Drapers Hill program on Democracy Development and Rule of Law at Stanford University Freedman Spoogli Institute for International Studies.