Khadija Shariff

Mrs. Shariff is an educationalist with a Masters in International Educational Development from University of Pennsylvania. Although she gained most of her education and work experience in the United States, in 2013, Mrs. Shariff decided to return back to her country of origin, Zanzibar, Tanzania, where she is currently working and living with her family. Mrs. Shariff’s passion and interest is to build youth with the right skills and competencies to grow and reach their potential.

One of the first jobs Mrs. Shariff took on upon her return to Zanzibar is to work with the Panje Project, a local NGO working to empower youth in northern Zanzibar. Within the Panje Project, she was a part of the initial team to establish the Aquatic Survival Project in Zanzibar, an innovative drowning prevention program that combines teaching survival swimming skills to young children aged 7 to 14, with sea safety education and community awareness building to schools and community members, utilizing local resources and materials. As a member of the board of The Panje Project, Mrs. Shariff has been able to inform and support in establishment of the pilot project, the development and testing of the manual, the training and supervision of local teachers and the scaling up and spreading of the project across both islands of Unguja and Pemba in Zanzibar. Mrs. Shariff continues to sit on the board as Secretary and work closely with the Panje Project staff while serving as liaising with the project funders and stakeholders to ensure the project continues to be sustained. In her other capacity, Mrs. Shariff currently works as the Head of Programs at Milele Zanzibar Foundation in Zanzibar where she leads the management and implementation of various development projects in the areas of education, health and livelihoods, in Zanzibar.