Mohammad Al-Khafaji is the CEO of the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA), the peak national body representing ethnic and multicultural communities in Australia.

Born in Iraq, Mohammad migrated to Australia, via Syria, as a refugee at the age of 13 in 2003. Mohammad lived in Iran and Syria and speaks Arabic and Farsi. He completed a Bachelor of Software Engineering at the University of Adelaide in 2012.

After University, Mohammad worked as an IT Business Analyst for several years while volunteering for various organisations. In September 2015 he was appointed as the inaugural CEO of Welcome to Australia, an organisation dedicated to cultivating a culture of welcome towards refugees and migrants.

In 2017 Mohammad participated in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), sponsored by the Department of State (US), to share knowledge and strengthen the Aus.-US relations into the future.

Through his refugee journey to Australia, Mohammad has become passionate about the success of Australia’s Multiculturalism. Mohammad believes cultural diversity makes us richer as a society and he is passionate about ensuring the voices of new and emerging communities are heard and are represented.

Mohammad was awarded the South Australian Governor’s Multicultural Award for Youth Achievement in 2012 and was a finalist in the 2018 SA Young Australian of the Year Awards.