Mr. Balasubramanian (Balu) Iyer
Regional Director

Mr. Balu Iyer has over 30 years of experience in managing international development operations, overseeing multiple country offices, and building new offices from the ground up. He worked in India in cooperative development before moving abroad to work on Asian regional concerns for overseas agencies in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Korea, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka. Previously, he worked with the Aga Khan Rural Support Program, ActionAid India, International Development Exchange and the Asia Foundation. He holds a Master's degree in Public Policy from the Goldman School of Public Policy at U.C. Berkeley, U.S.A., a Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Management from the Institute of Rural Management at Anand, India, and a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the National Institute of Technology at Durgapur, India.

Email: balu.iyer@icaap.coop

Mr. Kulbhushan Kukreja
Director – Finance and Administration

Mr. Kulbhushan Kukreja manages financial operations and administrative functions for ICA-AP and its personnel. His responsibilities extend to overseeing accounts and taxation matters for both ICA-AP and the ICA Malaysia Business Office (MBO). Moreover, he plays a pivotal role as the Secretary of the ICA-AP Committee on Credit and Banking. He holds a Master’s degree in Commerce with specialization in Accounting and Business Statistics, a Post Graduate Diploma in Corporate Law and Management with a specialization in Contract Act and Corporate Negotiations.

Email: kulbhushan.kukreja@icaap.coop

Mr. Shree Padmanabhan
IT Officer

Mr. Shree Padmanabhan oversees the IT operations and supports the communication tasks. He ensures the smooth functioning of the ICA-AP website and assists the office in carrying out Regional Assemblies, Board elections, conferences, webinars and Audio-Video shoots. He has led the development of electronic voting system. He also serves as the Secretary of the ICA-AP Committee on Youth Cooperation. Prior to ICA-AP, he worked as Communication Officer with the Institute for Integrated Rural Development, Shimla. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from the Osmania University in Hyderabad and an additional certificate in PHP Computer Programing.

Email: shree.padmanabhan@icaap.coop

Ms. Simren Singh
Lead - Gender and Education

Ms. Simren Singh leads the Gender and Education verticals at ICA-AP. She worked as a Program Officer and carried out research activities under the EU-funded program – Cooperatives in Development: People-Centred Businesses in Action. She serves as the Secretary of the ICA-AP Committee on Women. Previously, she worked as a Program Monitoring and Evaluation Associate at Seva Mandir in Udaipur, as Research Associate with Outline India in Gurgaon and as a Business Analyst with Goodera in Bangalore. She was also a Fellow under the State Bank of India, Youth for India Fellowship in 2014. She holds a Master’s degree in Politics with a specialization in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, University of Delhi.

Email: simren.singh@icaap.coop

Mr. Ganesh Gopal
Lead – Entrepreneurship Development

Mr. Ganesh Gopal leads the Entrepreneurship Development vertical at ICA-AP and oversees programs pertaining to cooperative entrepreneurship, youth and legal research. Previously, he worked in the National Centre for Financial Education, Mumbai (NCFE – Joint Venture of Reserve Bank of India, SEBI, IRDA and PFRDA) and the Kerala Startup Mission (under Department of Electronics & IT, Government of Kerala, India). He has also co-founded and worked closely with two non-profit institutions working in the domains of policy research and technology-skills learning respectively. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Madras Christian College, Chennai and a Master’s degree in Economics. He also has a Diploma in Human Resource Management (DHRM).

Email: ganesh.gopal@icaap.coop

Ms. Shivali Sarna
Lead - Communication and Membership Development

Ms. Shivali Sarna leads the Communication and Membership Development verticals at ICA-AP. Her key role is to ensure the effectiveness of communication tasks and active engagement with members. She contributes to facilitation of Regional Assemblies, Board meetings, and liase with members to enhance their participation in ICA-AP activities. Previously, she worked as head of Communication and Business Development at Access Livelihoods Consulting India Ltd., a social enterprise incubating cooperatives and as an Editor and Social Media Manager with a publishing agency. She holds a Master’s degree in Media Governance from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi and a Bachelor’s degree in Home Science Honors with a specialisation in Development Communication and Extension from the University of Delhi.

Email: shivali.sarna@icaap.coop

Ms. Monalisa Kashyap
Program Coordination and Advocacy Officer

Ms. Monalisa Kashyap joined ICA-AP as Program Coordination and Advocacy Officer for the ICA-EU Phase -2 Project "Cooperatives in Development: People-Centered Businesses in Action." She comes with the experience of working with a social enterprise in India, Access Livelihoods, as the Programs Head. She was instrumental in managing projects and partnerships across international, national, governmental, and non-governmental levels. Before that, Monalisa worked with Friends of Women World Banking, focusing on strengthening Farmer Producer Collectives through Capacity Building initiatives. Her passion is in two areas - Equality (both Gender and Income) and Women's Empowerment. She holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Development Management from the Development Management Institute, Patna, India and Bachelor of Commerce degree in Accountancy Honors from Patna Women’s College.

Email: monalisa.kashyap@icaap.coop

Mr. Naveen Kumar Singh
Program Officer (Research)

Mr. Naveen Kumar Singh joined ICA-AP as Program Officer (Research) for the ICA-EU Phase-2 Project "Cooperatives in Development: People-Centered Businesses in Action." He also serves as the Secretary of the ICA-AP Research Committee. He has extensive experience in cooperative development, having worked at the National Cooperative Union of India as a Research Officer. He developed training modules, facilitated training programs, and managed stakeholder engagement. Additionally, he worked with the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society (BRLPS) under the World Bank-funded Bihar Transformative Development Project. He holds a Postgraduate Diploma (PGDM) in Agribusiness and Management from Vaikunth Mehta National Institute of Cooperative Management, Pune, and a B. Tech in Mechanical Engineering from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University, Lucknow. He received the Centre for International Cooperation and Training in Agricultural Banking International Award during his PGDM for his work in Rural Financial Inclusion in SAARC countries, along with several other scholarships and certifications during his professional journey.

Email: naveen.singh@icaap.coop