Ali Lodhi is driving efficiency and impact in aid to developing countries
News > Ali Lodhi
by Benjamin Hosking
When aid from organizations like the World Bank arrives in developing countries like Pakistan, project managers like Ali Lodhi (MS in Project Management ‘26) step up to implement multimillion dollar plans that lift thousands of people out of poverty and provide countless opportunities for economic growth.
While at Associates in Development, a consulting firm in Islamabad, Pakistan, Lodhi started with proposal writing, quickly securing and managing many international donor-funded projects in financial inclusion and policy, infrastructure, and education.
Lodhi mentions one particularly meaningful project aiding smaller cities in Pakistan. Managing a group of over forty experts and field team members across three provinces, he conducted research on what each city was lacking and how banks and organizations like the World Bank Group and USAID could support these cities.
“I grew up in a developing country,” he said. “I’ve seen firsthand how poverty affects people’s ability to meet basic needs like education. Through my work, including a project I managed with the Asian Development Bank for out-of-school children, I’ve seen the kind of real, tangible impact these initiatives can have. That’s what motivates me to show up and give my best every day.”
Lodhi worked to improve efficiencies in local partner organizations in sectors like the dried fruits and nuts industry of Afghanistan, funded by the International Finance Corporation. He reported success and evaluations back to the World Bank and USAID.
“A lot of money gets lost because of inefficiencies,” Lodhi said. “There are ways to reduce waste by making more efficient plans and better managing resources and budgets.”
Earning an MS in Project Management — and a co-op at the World Bank Group
With more than five years of experience administering international aid for regional social programs, Lodhi decided to pursue his master’s in project management at Northeastern Arlington. Already equipped with degrees in economics, finance, and public policy, he saw the Arlington campus with its co-op program as a great way to join the community of international aid organizations based in the Washington, D.C. area and to improve his project management skills on an international scale.
“Northeastern has exposed me to new skills and a concentration in analytics,” Lodhi said. “I learned about software, methodologies, and management styles that give me more flexibility and preparation for running multiple projects simultaneously, as well as confidence.”
As part of the program, Lodhi spent six months on co-op with the World Bank Group International Finance Corporation’s corporate knowledge and learning team. While at IFC, he built a project management system for the team after speaking to every team member and finding their pain points. After presenting his recommendations to leadership, he developed protocols, dashboards, and workflows that gave managers better visibility across teams. At a recent meeting with his former supervisor, she told him that the team still uses Lodhi’s system.
Lodhi served as the evaluation lead for KNOWvember, a large-scale global knowledge event within the World Bank Group. He designed the evaluation framework, developed session-level surveys, coordinated data collection, and analyzed participation and feedback data, producing a report for senior leadership that informed future programming. He also co-led a learning priority assessment tied to the organization’s transformation efforts, supporting qualitative data collection, stakeholder interviews, and synthesis of insights to identify capability gaps and inform leadership decision-making.
Leveraging support on campus and building a professional network in Washington D.C. and Arlington
After learning how to leverage AI tools at Northeastern, Lodhi introduced his team to AI tools to help with project management by automatically predicting time and resource usage.
“If my bandwidth was two projects before, now I can manage five to six thanks to AI. It has revolutionized project management as a personal assistant.”
Lodhi, who was inducted to the Laurel and Scroll 100 Honor Society, will be the student speaker at Arlington’s 2026 commencement. In addition to his professional achievements, he volunteered with the Project Management Institute’s D.C. chapter, helping develop templates and manuals for project managers and later becoming the chapter’s assistant vice president governance.
Faculty and staff played a role in supporting Lodhi’s journey at Northeastern, including project management lecturer Jeffrey Pullen, assistant teaching professor of analytics Mike Horton, and Global Learner Support specialist Lynn Nakazawa, who helped him make a smooth transition to D.C.
“[Nakazawa] has been my mentor throughout the degree,” Lodhi said. “She helped me understand how to network effectively, improve my workplace communication, and prepare for interviews. Every country has its own norms, and it’s good to learn them at university before going to a job.”
Lodhi, who lived for many years in Pakistan’s capital city of Islamabad, sees the two cities as very similar with their many diplomats, government offices, and diverse professions. He notes that Northeastern has a great reputation in Pakistan, and the degree will help him throughout his career whether in the United States or Pakistan.
Looking to the future, Lodhi wants to continue working in roles that combine project management and analytics at organizations working on large scale impact. Long-term, he hopes to lead program portfolios, not just individual projects.
“My experience at the World Bank showed me how much I enjoy working in this field,” he said. “I want to help organizations think at a systematic level.”