Birmingham City Council’s director for inclusive growth, Waheed Nazir, is leaving after a decade working at the council.
Nazir will continue in his role as until December, while the council recruits his replacement. He said he has not yet decided future career plans.
During his time at the council, Nazir has led developments including the £1.5bn Smithfield market regeneration, HS2 Curzon, Paradise and the Commonwealth Games 2022 athletes’ village.
He brought forward a number of policy initiatives, including developing the country’s largest enterprise zone, which has £1.2bn of investment planned.
Nazir said: “It was a dream come true, as a local boy from the eastern part of Birmingham, to have an opportunity to shape the city I was born in and to set its direction for future generations.
“It has been an immense honour to fly the flag for Birmingham in the UK and around the world, and I have been fortunate to have worked alongside some amazing partners, especially the private sector business and development community, who have always shown a willingness to collaborate with the city council and support the people of Birmingham.”
Council leader Ian Ward said: “Waheed has led the way in the transformation of Birmingham over the last decade and the large number of major development projects either under way or in the pipeline are testament to his hard work and vision for the city.”
Commenting on working with Nazir, Pete Gladwell, head of public sector partnerships at Legal & General, said: “Waheed has been one of Birmingham’s great ambassadors; driving inward investment and self-delivered initiatives that have had a measurable, positive social impact on the city, whilst providing stability within the local authority. In recent years, Waheed, Ian Ward, and Andy Street have been a strong team that have brought new-found confidence and ambition to the region, supporting Legal & General through its £700m investment into the area.”
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