Dr. Azza Karam is the President and CEO of the Women’s Learning Partnership; Principal of  PLAZZA  LLC, and a member of the United Nations’  Secretary  General High  Level  Advisory  Board on Multilateralism.

She served as Secretary  General of the  World  Conference of  Religions for  Peace (WCRP)  from  2019-2023,  and as  Director of its Women’s  Programmes from  2000-2004.  Prior to returning to  WCRP, she worked at the  United  Nations for two decades,  where she  Coordinated the Arab  Human  Development  Reports,  co-founded and  Chaired the  United  Nations Inter-Agency Task Force on Religion – with over 20 UN System bodies – and founded and convened its Multi Faith Advisory Council, as part of the 750 global NGO database she coordinated. During her tenure at the  United Nations,  Azza was a  Lead  Facilitator for  UN system-wide peer-to-peer “Strategic  Learning  Exchanges”  on  ‘Religion,  Development and  Diplomacy’.

She has worked with several intergovernmental and international organisations (the OSCE,  the EU, and International IDEA) in sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and East and  Central Asia, where she created and managed global programmes on Women and Politics, as well as Democratisation in the Middle East.

She has taught in various universities, including West Point Military Academy and is widely published and translated into several languages. She has received multiple awards,  including for her work on/in the United Nations, as well as in/on Interfaith work and Culture.  In  2022,  she was awarded a Doctorate in  Humane  Letters honoris causa by  John  Cabot  University in Rome, Italy.

Born in Egypt, Azza is also a citizen of the Netherlands.

photo credit; rfp.org 2019