December 16th, 2008
Unitas Communications announces the appointment of the former leader of the British Muslim Forum (BMF), Zareen Roohi Ahmed as a member of the Unitas team. Zareen was the first female Chief Executive of a major UK Muslim organisation. Following 7/7 she led on the critical agenda of tackling extremism, building community confidence and promoting inter-cultural and faith relations. She established numerous projects across the country, developed various strategies and trained many people (including central & local governments both at home & globally) to work effectively in this field. She went on to become a senior partner at Waterhouse Consulting Group, where she headed the Muslim Communities & Counter-Extremism Division. Prior to this Zareen was National Operations Director at the Experience Corps and has held various senior executive roles.
Muddassar Ahmed, Chief Executive of Unitas Communications said: ” We are delighted that Zareen has chosen to join our team, She is a highly respected figure both in the UK and across the world in her field and
we anticipate her to provide Unitas with invaluable expertise on matters such as preventing violent extremism, capacity building Muslim communities and promoting intercultural and faith community
relations”.
Zareen Roohi Ahmed said, “I am delighted to come on board with Unitas Communications, a firm that is arguably the leading UK Company of its kind in acting as an interface between institutions in Western and
Muslim countries and cultures. I look forward to continue working closely with public authorities in policy development and tackling some of the major issues facing our society”.
The mother of two is a keen painter and her PhD in Islamic Studies research focuses on the position of Muslim Women in Britain.
October 28th, 2008
Unitas communications successfully managed Government and Political relations, public affairs support and media management for this year’s Global Peace and Unity and the Excel centre in London, helping maintain its position as one of the the largest event of its kind in Europe with over 30,000 visitors.
This year’s GPU Event was a resounding success, featuring a plethora of prominent and diverse guest speakers, ranging from the Nick Clegg MP (Leader of the Liberal Democrats), Stephen Timms MP (Financial Secretary to the Treasury), Shahid Malik MP (Minister for International Development), Tony McNulty MP (Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform), Simon Hughes MP, Bill Rammell MP (Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs) to former cricketer turned politician Imran Khan, Tony Benn, Chair of the Hindu Forum UK Ramesh Kalliday & Jermaine Jackson (Celebrity Big Brother Star), amongst many more.
Britain’s Muslim Community were able to celebrate the achievements of the past year with a host of award ceremonies including those for the Model Mosque competition and the Islamic education awards.
CEO of Unitas communications said: ‘I would like to congratulate all those involved in organising this event, especially the Unitas team, who worked hard to ensure the event had the correct political profile despite the misguided attempts of a minority of misinformed commentators to dissuade leading politicians, activists and community leaders from attending’.
October 28th, 2008
Unitas communications has organised a prestigious launch for the GPU event at the River Room of the House of Lords on Thursday 23 October 2008.
Prominent members of all three major political parties, including Rt Hon David Lammy MP and Minister of State for Higher Education, Dominic Grieve MP and Shadow Home Secretary & Lord Phillips of Sudbury spoke at the reception, which was kindly hosted by Baroness Uddin and attended by a vast array of media, business and NGO representatives. Guests for the evening included Lord Nazir Ahmed, Sir Iqbal Sacranie, Lyn Brown MP, Andrew Pelling MP along with the Chairmen of the GPU and CEO of Islam Channel, Mohamed Ali.
Unitas CEO Muddassar Ahmed offered a vote of thanks to all attendees at the landmark reception, adding that ‘while the GPU’s importance to the Muslim community of Britain and indeed Europe has been clear since its inauguration in 2005, it has now blossomed into one of the key forums for inter-faith dialogue in the UK, and should be celebrated as such.’
September 5th, 2008
Unitas has been appointed to handle political liaison, media coverage and general public affairs support for this year’s annual ‘Global Peace and Unity’ (GPU) event.
Now in its fourth year, the GPU is one of the largest Muslim cultural events in Europe and has been instrumental in promoting Islamic culture and arts, as well as community cohesion and interfaith dialogue.
Unitas CEO Muddassar Ahmed said ‘the GPU’s aim of cohesion amongst global communities is one that fits perfectly within the Unitas ethos. As such, Unitas are optimally placed to act as the communications bridge between the GPU and mainstream media outlets, institutions and prominent figures from public life.’
August 5th, 2008
Unitas Communications and Utopia 33 today announced that they have agreed a strategic partnership. Utopia 33 is a leading UK Film company having worked on films such as Halal Harry, Monsters (Film4), The Baby Juice Express, Mine, Pandemonium, Wallflower, Balancing The Books.
Under the terms of the agreement Unitas Communications and Utopia 33 will work together primarily on developing feature film projects.
Unitas Communications will also enter into a joint venture with Utopia 33 to develop a DVD to target the Hajj and Umrah pilgrim market. Whilst Unitas will be co-ordinating the project overall with other partners, Utopia 33 will be supervising the post-production work.
Muddassar Ahmed CEO of Unitas said: We are delighted to be working with Utopia 33, and are optimistic that our collaboration will not only be mutually beneficial but also lead to the realisation of some very worthwhile and exciting projects.
Mike Wood and Jade Bokhari the Directors of Utopia 33 said: There is enormous synergy between both Companies and we look forward to the joint creation of powerful, enlightening and enjoyable entertainment.
July 2nd, 2008
Unitas Communications announces the appointment of Amadou Thiam as West Africa Associate. Amadou is experienced public affairs professional and has worked on corporate and political projects in Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Nigeria. Amadou previous roles include working for the UN, The Malian Govt and NBC.
Amadou graduated in Business Management for the University of Ghana Business School and also holds a postgraduate qualification in Financial Management.
He was also one of the founders of the Malian association of human resource managers. He is also a Director of the Ghanaian NGO Annur.
Amadou will lead all of Unitas communications, governmental and corporate work in Mali, Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
Muddassar Ahmed CEO of Unitas said: We are very pleased to welcome Amadou to our team and are confident that he will add value to our brand through his extensive experience and background. He is another asset for our company, and his appointment perfectly suits our strategy to maintain and enhance our strategic positioning and experience in the region whilst keeping pace with our growth.
