Maria Shumusti is the Resource Mobilization and Partnerships Adviser at International IDEA’s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Maria joined International IDEA in August 2025. 

She leads regional resource mobilization and donor engagement efforts, supporting the development of strategic partnerships with governments, Member States, development partners, private foundations, and regional institutions. Her work includes donor mapping, pipeline development, strategic outreach, concept note and proposal development, cooperation agreements, partner stewardship, visibility strategies, advocacy and internal coordination across regional and country-level programmes.

She brings over a decade of experience, having worked with the United Nations World Food Programme across Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Pacific leading communications and partnerships, as well as with public sector institutions in India and Australia. In these roles, she has led high-level donor engagement and driven strategic communications and advocacy on food security, climate resilience, gender, and social protection.