Pranita Achyut

Pranita Achyut (she/her) joined ICRW as the first Director of Research and Programs in ICRW Asia. She is a member of both the Global and Asia Senior Management Teams and plays a key role in institutional strategic planning and decision-making.

Pranita brings 20 years of experience in applied research and program monitoring, particularly in gender, gender-based violence, adolescent health and family planning. During her previous tenure at ICRW, Pranita led some of  the organization’s flagship programs, including Gender Equity Movement in Schools (GEMS) and Promoting Adolescent Engagement Knowledge & Health (PAnKH). Pranita has also worked extensively with USAID supported programs including Impact on Marriage: Program Assessment of Conditional Cash Transfers (IMPACCT), the evaluation of the Apni Beti Apna Dhan (ABAD) program initiated by the Government of Haryana in 1994. She worked across teams to develop knowledge products as well as organize disseminations for key audiences – stakeholders, policymakers and government agencies.

Before returning to ICRW, Pranita was leading the research portfolio for Population Services International (PSI)’s India office. She was responsible for design and execution of exploratory and evaluative research in multiple thematic areas, including family planning, sanitation, and non-communicable diseases. She also worked with UNICEF, the World Bank and the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare. At these organizations, she led many projects and provided technical and managerial support with several others on gender, gender-based violence, adolescent health, family planning and child health.

In her new leadership role at ICRW Asia, Pranita is responsible for oversight of the four teams that represent ICRW Asia’s research agenda: Health; Violence, Rights and Inclusion; Gender, Youth and Development; and Gender, Economic Empowerment and Livelihoods.