ADNAN KIFAYAT
Adnan Kifayat is Head of Global Security Ventures for the Gen Next Foundation, leading efforts to develop innovative solutions to global security challenges.Prior to joining Gen Next, Adnan held senior positions at the White House, State Department, and Treasury Department, as well as overseas at diplomatic missions in Jerusalem and Tunis. He served as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s Acting Special Representative to Muslim communities, creating programs to broaden and deepen partnerships with leaders in Muslim communities worldwide based on shared commitments to global security.At the U.S. State Department, he established the Global Strategic Engagement Center (GSEC) to integrate government-wide programs to counter the spread of violent extremism. At the Treasury Department, he negotiated financial agreements between the US, key allies and institutions around the world, and served as Alternate Executive Director of the African Development Bank. He was a director of the National Security Council staff twice, coordinating counterterrorism and economic policies in the Middle East and Africa. Prior to public service, Adnan created market access strategies for Cargill and designed programs for Delphi International to advance U.S. engagement on a people-to-people basis around the world. Adnan is an Advisor to the Center for Sanctions and Illicit Finance (CSIF) at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracy, an Advisory Member of Harvard University’s Project on Countering Extremism and Online Hate, Co-Chair of the Homeland Security Advisory Commission’s Working Group on Countering Violent Extremism, and a Senior Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, helping develop the next generation of transatlantic leaders.