Martine van Bijlert (pronounce: beylert) studied Sociology of Non-Western Societies at Leiden University in the Netherlands and has spent over 10 years working in Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan.
Currently, co-director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, Martine's interest in the region started when, as a student, she visited Quetta twice to study the situation of Afghan refugees (1990 and 1992-1993). After that she worked as Community Development Officer in Kabul for an international NGO (1997-1998); Political Secretary for the Netherlands Embassy in Tehran (2001-2004); Political Adviser to the EU Special Representative for Afghanistan in Kabul (2004-2008); and most recently as an independent analyst for, among others, the Afghan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) and the Netherlands Embassy in Kabul. She has travelled extensively, most frequently to Uruzgan. Martine speaks Dari.
