Z. N. Tahmida Begum

Z. N. Tahmida Begum is a botanist and former chairperson of Bangladesh Public Service Commission, the first woman chairperson of the commission. She was a professor of botany at the University of Dhaka.

Early life Begum was born on 26 November 1945 in Rajshahi District, East Bengal, British India. She completed her bachelor's degree and masters in botany from the University of Dhaka in 1966 and 1967 respectively.

Career Begum has served as a Trustee Board member of Bangladesh National Museum from 1993 to 1995. She was a member of the Syndicate Board of the University of Dhaka from 1994 to 1996. She is a professor of botany at the University of Dhaka.

Begum faced allegation of corruption by Transparency International Bangladesh during her term as the chairperson of Bangladesh Public Service Commission. She organized a meeting on the matter on 25 March 2007 where Hafizur Rahman, law teacher at the University of Dhaka, called for a judicial investigation against her and the commission. On 8 May 2007, she ended her term as chairperson and was replaced by Saadat Husain. She had recommended canceling the quota system in the Bangladesh Civil Service to the President of Bangladesh.

Begum is a fellow of the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences.

In June 2018, Begum participated in a protest calling for the release of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia from prison organized by Shoto Nagarik.