Professional Experience:
Professional experience summary: Kabita Bose
Kabita Bose is a seasoned systems strengthening, transition and transformation leader with nearly 30 years of regional and country governance, humanitarian and development experience across Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. Rising from field research to lead country offices, she is now Country Director of Plan International Bangladesh, leading a large portfolio that includes the Rohingya response. She champions localisation, gender equality, youth and girls' leadership and climate action.
Since July 2022, she has been Country Director of Plan International Bangladesh, leading a €20 million portfolio and more than 250 staff, with responsibility for country strategy, programme quality, safeguarding, risk management, finances and fundraising. As Plan International is a federation of 20 member organisations, she runs country operations under federated governance requiring strong principles and compliance. Her main achievement has been moving the organisation from direct implementation to working through local partners, strengthening local ownership, sustainability and effectiveness. She has led the Rohingya and climate-related emergency responses, sits on the Strategic Executive Group for the Rohingya Response and oversees an NGO Platform of more than 180 organisations. She has widened Plan's donor base and positioned it for new funding, including World Bank-linked financing.
From June 2021 to June 2022, she was Country Director of Oxfam in Liberia, leading the office's closure and transition under Oxfam International's global restructuring. She met every transition milestone on time, managed changes to programmes, finance, governance and staffing in line with Oxfam Confederation systems and processes, and kept staff engaged. She handed a major EU-funded programme to a national women's rights organisation, and the transition raised no significant donor, audit or compliance issues.
From 2017 to 2021, as Oxfam International Asia's Regional Humanitarian, Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Resilience Adviser, she overhauled emergency preparedness and response systems across 14 country offices, strengthening humanitarian systems to meet Oxfam Confederation requirements and standards. She built regional surge systems and response frameworks, advised Country Directors and senior leaders, and represented Oxfam at regional and global forums on localisation, resilience and humanitarian reform.
At HelpAge International (2015–2017), as Regional DRR and Capacity Building Adviser, she managed resilience programmes across South Asia and trained country teams and partners in emergency preparedness. From 2011 to 2015, as Associate Country Director / Country Programme Manager for Oxfam Hong Kong in Bangladesh, she was de facto Country Director, leading strategy, programme delivery, donor compliance and the One Oxfam transformation.
In 2010–2011, as Knowledge Management Specialist and Strategic Adviser to the UNDP Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme, she supported the Government of Bangladesh in reforming disaster management across the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief and 13 other ministries.
She coordinated disability inclusion, DRR and refugee programmes for Handicap International Bangladesh (2009–2010), managed DRR programmes for Oxfam GB in Haiti (2007–2008) and held increasingly senior humanitarian roles with Oxfam GB Bangladesh (2001–2007), including managing ECHO/DIPECHO grants. She began in monitoring and community development at Anando (1997–2001) and as a Research Supervisor on a UNICEF-supported study (1996/97).
She has raised funds from FCDO, the EU/ECHO, USAID, DFAT, UN agencies, the World Bank, ADB and corporates, and represented her organisations at the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction and Asian Ministerial Conferences on DRR.