Professional experience in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since October 1989 (Zaire between 1971 & 1997)

 

EXECUTIVE INTRODUCTION

 

Andraman can boast an in-depth knowledge of the Congo, notably through its continuous involvement in the former Zaire between 1989 - 1992 and 2004 - 2008, on a very regular note since then. This is the outcome of the dense social and professional network woven by Roland Deschamps with local in international partners on the long term within the economic (private and public) field as well as within the associative and political ones.

His professional experience in the country goes back to October 1989, when as a young graduate of the Solvay Brussels school of economics and management, he establishes himself in Kinshasa after being hired by a major industrial company deeply rooted in the country. This operation included numerous activities amongst which those deployed by a major branch of Unilever going back to the XIXth century for some of them. It is thus in Kinshasa that Roland Deschamps will further his initiation to this part of the world for having lived earlier in Brazzaville, across the river between 1974 and 1978 when his father was posted there as Belgian ambassador.

This experience was abruptly interrupted by the very serious events that occurred throughout the country in September-October 1991 (looting, exactions, Belgo-French military intervention and evacuation of most expatriates).

While remaining in close contact with the country’s events, it is only in November 2004, (over a year after the official end of the second civil war involving several neighbours that devastated the country) that Roland Deschamps returns, as an official of the EC, when the DRC barely reconnected with international and bilateral financial institutions and embarked upon its tedious reconstruction, in many a regard. He will live there for another four years and travel in many parts of the country, several of them still in a mayhem or exposed to military unrest, while consolidating his network initiated almost twenty-five years ago to-date. Since then, his involvement in both the private (agroforestry project with Novacel at Ibi-village) and the public sectors (external aid) sends him back to the Congo regularly.

 

A. Democratic Republic of the Congo : Evaluation of support to the NAO projects since 2010

 

1. Date :  January - February 2020

2. Location : Kinshasa

3. Beneficiary organisation and parties involved : EDF National authorising officer support unit (COFED - ministry of finance), NAO support programmes (PAON), technical ministries and project management units in related focal areas.

4. Function : Institutional expert, head of the evaluation mission (one other expert), in partnership with ProMan Ltd. (L).

5. Responsibilities : Coordination of the mission consisting of the final evaluation of the 10th EDF “PAON” (Support programme / 2010-2015) and the mid-term evaluation of two other 1th EDF support programmes (“PAON” / 2015-2020).

6. Major activities and achievements :

Evaluation of successive NAO supports according to the DAC criteria (relevancy, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, viability) and to those specific to the EU (added value and coherence with member States’ support). The assignment included an evaluation of the work carried out by the beneficiary entity (COFED) as well as recommendations as to future support programmes as soon as March 2020, notably with respect to staging the progressive reduction of financial support to “PAON” through the EDF ("exit strategy", EDF post Cotonou scaling down (“degressivity”) and adapting the COFED’s implication to the reality of the Community’s ODA within the years to come.

7. Skills and experience acquired :

A mission that enabled Roland Deschamps to reconnect with a context very familiar to him as he has was an important actor of support provided to the DRC NAO between 2004 and 2010. At the time he had indeed been responsible for supporting the NAO directly until the said COFED was resurrected (actually starting from scratch) and operational again as from the end of 2007. His implication included recruitment of its personnel, coaching and supporting it once the programmes they were to take direct responsibility of were effectively transferred. This in the frame of a context that remains very difficult while being different of what prevailed after 2002 when resumption of structural cooperation with the EU took place. He nevertheless could see from his own eyes the functioning of a structure rather effective and very professional.

 

B. Democratic Republic of the Congo : technical assistance to the EDF NAO as to monitoring & evaluation

 

1. Dates: February- March & June – July 2010

2. Location: Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

3. Organisation and involved parties: EDF NAO office & support services (COFED) du FED en RDC, ministry of Finance. The COFED, reinstalled as from 2005 after an EDF suspension that lasted some twelve years and again operational since 2007, was in charge of supporting the Finance minister in his capacity of NAO. It would co-manage (with the Commission) all EDF funded programmes and projects (9th and 10th  FED) ; which amounted to more than 1 billion Euros since resumption of Community co-operation in the DRC back in 2002 (signing of the 8th and 9th National indicative programmes)

4. Position: monitoring & evaluation expert (in partnership with Linpico), in charge of setting up an M&E system for the NAO with respect to all EDF programmes and projects in the DRC, all areas included.

5. Responsibilities:

Under the direct authority of the COFED head, deputy NAO, and in close collaboration with the technical assistance team in place (3 experts), in charge of piloting an awareness and preparation mission, both within the Cofed as with EDF technical partners. It consisted of developing a streamlined reporting system as to the achievements of expected results as formulated in the projects being implemented.

 

6. Major activities and achievements:

6.1. 1st phase : baseline assessment, designing and organisation of an initial M&E workshop:

Following the first interviews, it was decided to focus on the 9th EDF Health Programme (PS9Fed), the Support to governance programme (« PAG » 9th EDF) and possibly the 2nd Support to rehabilitation programme (PAR II) of transport & communication infrastructures in general. The PS9Fed, started in 2006, was the first one being followed-up by the Cofed as it was reorganised beginning 2004. The team was completing its contract by mid-2011. As to the « PAG », having barely started in 2009, its project team had just been restructured at the end of that same year. In both cases, it was interesting to adapt the M&E system to the NAO’s needs with the advantage of the PAG’s one still being redesigned.

In parallel to those encounters, a workshop designed for those Cofed staff concerned, was run during several half-days in order to agree on the situation prevailing and on the most obvious needs. This was an opportunity to take all M&E systems in place through the grid in the various projects and being very practical while reviewing theoretical concepts with these very staff members. The outcome was a set of monitoring fiches (2 times one page) for two projects: one having to be filled in by the project units in the field, the other to be forwarded to the NAO after having been reviewed and analysed by his office in order to enable him to communicate on results achieved and objectives aimed at.

 

6.2. 2nd phase : implementation monitoring and consolidation workshop on lessons learned ad skills acquired:

Monitoring of the actual working out of the M&E tools designed during the first phase; notably with the PSUs of the Health programme (PS9FED), the PAG (support to governance)  and the PAR II  9th EDF, in close liaison with the sections concerned within the EU delegation. The assignment ended with a one-day workshop with all PSU heads, technical ministries officials and EUD staff concerned. The overall goal was to convince those interested in designing harmonized - hence simple, tools, meaning that could be understood by people that are not involved in those areas (such as colleagues present that day). The issue of communication to the NAO and from the NAO was the exercise's spinal aim.

 

7. Acquired skills and experience:

 

This experience enabled me to assess the level of professionalism acquired by the NAO office set up between 2004 and 2007. The progression in terms of responsibility had become very important. The NAO now monitors the whole 10th EDF programme and almost all 9th EDF ones.. Having taken part very significantly in its building-up since the beginning, being involved in recruiting and assisting many a Cofed staff member, it was quite enriching to realize how much was achieved.

 

On the other hand, the 2nd stage of my assignment coincided with the festivities related to the country’s 50th anniversary of independence, and it was truly thrilling to experience it on location.

Finally, working in Kinshasa remains a permanent challenge as one has to adapt continuously to a context that keeps on being very difficult in many aspects (political, logistical, juridical, security wise and even military). A county where the State of right is still in-existent and fundamental human rights such as individual freedom, liberty of press are still very stuttering.

 

C. Support and advice as to the implementation of an agroforestry project that contributes to the fight against climate change and deforestation through afforestation with the support of the Congo basin forest fund and private technical and financial partners

 

1. Dates: ongoing on a regular basis since beginning 2009

2. Location: Kinshasa and Bandundu provinces, the DRC

3. Organisation and parties involved: Novacel – Nouvelle société d’agriculture, de cultures et d’élevage, in charge since 2008 of the implementation of a project in the frame of the Clean development mechanism (CDP & Kyoto protocol) managed by the Bio Carbon Fund and monitored by the World bank. This programme is registered as such since 2012 (by the UN convention on climate change) and has mainly being executed in the Ibi-village station (cf. www.ibi-village.cd) in the eastern part of the Kinshasa province some 140 km from the city centre; In a first stage, it will consist in developing over 6.400 ha (24.71 sq. miles or 15,814.65 acres) of land on which trees (almost 2 million to-date) and cassava are being grown (90 metric tons / week). A similar programme, amounting to €3.8 million, supported by the Congo basin forest fund and monitored by the ADB (African development bank), started in April 2012 in the southern part of the Kwamouth territory (province du Bandundu). In both cases, the implementing partners are private investors, such as Danone Inc, Suez Environment and Umicore to mention the most significant ones, the Congolese NGO GiAgro, established on the Ibi site and the Brussels based NGO, (Service laïque de coopération au développement - SLCD).

4. Position: as a consultant specialised in international project cycle management as well as in business administration, technical partner at various stages of the project execution and member of the Novacel advisory board.

5. Responsibilities:

As an integrated project, the programme being implemented by Novacel and its partners at à Ibi-village aims to build on all components of human development in the frame of poverty reduction. Andraman’s role consists therefore in making sure that the project follows the OECD/DAC recommendations as to capacity reinforcing with respect to the human ones (health, education…), the economic ones (employment creation, commercial opportunities, local markets etc.), the societal ones (culture, community development…), the environmental ones (fight against land degradation, deforestation, clean charcoal production, the institutional ones (learn to manage the common good and thus building the State reconstruction…), security (trough providing opportunities to communities and social groups living in precarious situations) and gender equality (through the alphabetisation of women and education of girls).

In close collaboration with the project promoters, Olivier Mushiete (managing director of Novacel and on location), his family and employees, their technical and financial partners, Andraman’s responsibilities range from the formulation of projects bound to be supported by the odd donor (multilateral or bilateral), the following up of the tender, the monitoring of the eventual implementation once the contract awarded, which includes providing advice as to management control or future developments.

 

6. Major activities and achievements:

The nature of this kind of commitment involves a very regular commitment from Andraman, for long periods occasionally since 2009. However the following contributions can be highlighted:

6.1. Project formulation and drafting of tender dossiers in the frame of call for proposals, which includes an administrative follow up:

Since September 2009, drafting (or contribution to it) of several tenders, mostly for the EC (ENRPT and Energy facilities, Food security) as well as for the above mentioned Congo basin forest fund (supported by the UK and Norway) or the King Baldwin foundation often in partnership with the Belgian NGO ‘SLCD’ and the Congolese one, GIAGRO. As a reminder, the support from the CBFF was secured in 2010 and the implementation of the project (Ibi-village and southern Kwamouth) begun in April 2012. The award for the Congolese entrepreneur with the best governance practices was granted to Novacel by the King Baldwin foundation in March 2012.

6.2. Support and advice in business administration and logical framework approach:

Several logical framework workshops were conducted to those mainly involved in managing the programme at Ibi-village as to restructuring it and reinforcing its management information and monitoring & evaluation system; all parties involved were gathered at a major workshop organised late October / early November 2011 in Brussels. Support also includes being involved in various encounters or negotiations with public institutions (e.g. the French National forest office), private investors or technical partners on a regular basis.

 

7. Skills and experience acquired:

 

This experience allowed Andraman to reconnect with the programmes born in the wake of the adoption of the Montreal (1985) and Kyoto (1997) protocols, which translated into actions on the ground in Zimbabwe, notably when Roland Deschamps was there between 1995 and 1998 on behalf of UNIDO – United nations industrial development organisation (cfr this experience below in B as well as under the « Austral Africa »). At the time some projects involved setting up a « Cleaner production » or a « Clean PPP – Private-public-partnership », both in close collaboration with both the private sector and the academic world (and related research institutions).

Andraman finds it a real pity that, the private sector is often left aside when public aid funded programmes are being engineered or implemented in the name of petty or narrow-minded reflexes in spite of what is stated in major reference texts such as the Cotonou Partnership, which clearly dwells on the necessity of making it an driving engine of sustainable development.

On the contrary, the Clean development mechanism and the Bio-Carbon fund put entrepreneurship and private initiative at the rightful place and support numerous projects worldwide accordingly. However, the project being implemented in Ibi-village had to rely mostly on private support since 2008 (and even before) although it is the very first of its kind and of such a scale in Sub-Saharan Africa. As indicated earlier, it is only in 2012 that the project was officially registered as a CDM one by the UN framework convention on climate change. In the meantime, notable results were achieved and being very knowledgeable of the realities of the private sector in Africa, Andraman could only be very fortunate to be a partner of such an extraordinary initiative.

 

D. Support to the ministry of planning of the Democratic republic of the Congo in setting up a national monitoring & evaluation system

 

1. Dates: May-June 2009

2. Location: Kinshasa, DRC

3. Organisation and parties involved: Congolese office for fighting against poverty and disparity (OCPI in French), based at the ministry of Planning, the minister’s (Olivier Kamitatu) staff and the National statistics institute (INS);

4. Position: monitoring & evaluation expert

5. Responsibilities: in support to the director of the OCPI (Mrs Francesca Bomboko) and her team, provide a technical assistance to the reinforcement of the country’s monitoring & evaluation system, in order to collect, analyse and communicate data regarding all programmes being implemented in the DRC since the resumption of structural co-operation (in 2000-01) with the aim of reaching the achievement point related to the heavily indebted poor countries initiative (HIPC-i) and beyond, the Millennium development goals (MDG).

 

6. Major activities and achievements:

6.1. 1st phase: analysis of the existing system and training of the officials concerned:

Conduct working sessions and train OCPI, Planning ministry, INS high-level officials. The national M&E system was actually thoroughly reviewed and an owned by those directly involved.

 

6.2. 2nd phase: preparation and execution of a workshop that included a presentation of the national M&E system reinforcement project.

At the final stage of the assignment, a workshop brought together most ministries ad institutions concerned as well as several technical and financial partners including organisations drawn from the non-State actors such as NGO or civil society members. The minister himself and some of his staff were given the opportunity to see the project’s new version; The aim of the day was to examine in common what implementations modalities could be envisaged, how the Strategic poverty reduction programme’s intervention logic could possibly be up-dated or reviewed.

 

7. Acquired skills and experience:

This experience came in the continuity of the work carried out as the focal person for the donor coordination within the EU delegation between end 2004 and end of 2008. Besides being in charge of supporting the NAO function (cfr. in section “EDF NAO”), which also included being in connection with the ministry of planning, I supervised an EDF funded technical support project in favour of the same ministry in 2008-09. Moreover, what was at stake in reorganising the monitoring of all programmes being implemented in the framework of the PRSP execution by the World bank and the IMF, was having the country’s external public debt, a heritage of the past, being substantially erased through the above mentioned HIPC- initiative in 2010 (which eventually occurred).

Lastly, it was an opportunity to finger out the nonsense which consisted in willing national capacities to be reinforced while parallel programme monitoring structures were being multiplied aside the National statistics institute by the very actors funding them in spite of the Paris declaration and the aid effectiveness recommendations agenda in high level forums.

 

E. Democratic republic of the Congo: Seconded to the head of the EU delegation in his capacity of EDF national authorising officer

 

1. Dates: November 2004 – December 2008

2. Location: Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

3. Institution and parties involved: EC delegation in the DRC, on top of the Council and the European parliament, the Commission, a major institution of the EU, which is tasked with conducting its external policy, notably with ACP countries, representing some 24 billion Euros (10th EDF at the time) in terms of development aid. This framework (Cotonou agreement) was suspended in 1992 with the DRC and resumed in 2002 with the signing of the 8th and 9th National indicative programmes (NIP). The Government office in charge of managing the EDF had withered and eventually disappeared during that very troublesome period.

4. Position: Responsible of the EDF Project management department, seconded to the head of delegation in his capacity of NAO on behalf of the Congolese government, which is to say managing all EC funded projects from their identification to their final evaluation and on the way their implementation (including tendering and contracting); This involved managing an envelope of some 1 billion Euros, of which some 300 million in the course of being executed (6th, 7th and 8th EDF).

5.  Responsibilities:

NAO « makeshift »: Under the direct authority of the head of delegation, on one hand, in charge of setting up (as of end 2004) and then run the ad hoc unit (comprising a secretary and an accountant) within the same delegation (« internal » NAO) and on the other hand support the reinstalling of the structure aimed at assisting the EDF NAO (minister of finance) and the Congolese government in recovering the responsibilities temporarily in the hands of the EC through the delegation in the DRC. This meant assisting the HoD (and all operational section heads) as the prime interlocutor of the NAO as well as managing the above-mentioned internal NAO cell under his formal responsibility as well.

Project cycle management: making sure that project life cycles are well followed up, meaning the execution of all tasks linked to project identification and instruction, the elaboration of financial proposals, tender dossiers and procedures, contracting, implementation monitoring and control, payments authorisation and execution, joint annual reports with the NAO, in brief, everything according to EC rulings, precepts and procedures.

Liaise with all parties involved: making sure that there is coordination with the delegation’s « finance & contracts » section, bring technical competences to the NAO in the frame of the attributions him granted through the Lomé and Cotonou conventions, the appropriate training, regular contacts with all actors/partners involved within the delegation as with all technical parties (NAO services, technical ministries, contract holders, other donors and international agencies multilateral & bilateral …) ;

Follow up, monitoring and evaluation: making sure that project execution happens as prescribed by EC precepts both as to administrative and financial procedures as well as to managerial ones (results oriented management, logical framework approach). In coordination with the NAO office and related EUD units, making sure archiving and filing of all financial conventions / projects happens in a simple and effective way while being pedagogic with all those involved, especially on the Congolese side.

 

6. Major activities and achievements or projects:

6.1. Setting up of a NAO support unit within the delegation: a very specific management information system was put in place (as project documents had to follow a double circuit) in order to enable the NAO in his capacity of project manager to be included within the delegation while allowing operational sections to fulfil their role as EC; This involved training my own staff (secretary + accountant) in the process.

6.2. Support to the HoD in his role as NAO: Moreover, the HoD as project manager from the EC side had to be represented in his monitoring role within the project support units as well as towards the technical ministries or departments in their own capacity of master of works for all EDF funded projects 6th, 7th or 8th for most of them.

6.3. Support to the Congolese authorities in putting back the NAO system in place (€3.2 million project): In constant liaison with the co-ordinator of the NAO support unit (Cofed) and his technical assistant (an LT expert: Mr Dominique Lecompte), my office has been instrumental in reinstalling this national cell within the ministry of finance, notably through direct contacts with the minister and his staff, as to recruiting and training the personnel (2005-2006) as well as to restoring a formal collaboration circuit formal between the Cofed and the delegation on one hand, between the Cofed and the public services concerned by the EC co-operation on the other hand;

6.4. Institutional support Programme (€19.2 million): a project managed by the EUD from A to Z (closed end 2006), it entered upon several areas related to reinforcing the capacities of those involved in dealing with the NAO’s office; it also supported areas directly involved in the on-going democratic transition in place (justice, elections, "transition" institutions – June 2003 to December 2006).

6.5. Support to rehabilitation programme (€ 80 million): consisting in restoring the country’s major roads, tracks and causeways (Kinshasa, Bandundu, Equator provinces), it was by far the most important projects amongst those under implementation end of 2004 when it actually started. It followed up on a very similar one that ended that same year. It was still being executed in 2010. In the absence of an actual head of infrastructures section within the delegation until mid 2006, I was tasked with its coordination, which included supervising the PSU team (3 expatriates and several Congolese engineers) and all projects components across the country.

6.6. Assist in co-ordinating with other donors or international technical & financial partners as representative of the EC / EDF: as there was no chief of co-operation until early 2007 and between late 2007 and early 2008, I filled in on many a instance as the EUD representative or co-representative in monthly donor meetings that included the UK (DfiD), the USA (Usaid), France, Belgium, Japan, Sweden, the Netherlands, the IMF, the IBRD/World bank and all other UN agencies regrouped under the UNDP resident representative and his deputy (Mr Mountain and Mrs Lise Grande). This included a meeting in Brussels late 2006 that paved the way to closer collaboration with the national authorities through the ministries of Planning and Finance after the installation of the newly elected government in February 2007.

 

7. Acquired skills and experience:

 

This professional experience within an EC delegation in the DRC enabled me to acquire an in-depth knowledge of the EC’s procedures (financial, managerial and contractual) and the way it actually works between the headquarters and the field. More specifically it included life experiences as essential as:

 

- Evolving in a country in a « post conflict » situation (almost under trusteeship of the UN with some 17,000 soldiers / blue helmets spread across the whole territory) where national capacities (human, material) are extremely week and the risks of a major destabilization still pretty much important;

- Adapting to a most difficult context in many crucial or basic areas (political, logistical, juridical, and even military or related to severe insecurity still prevailing in huge swathes of the country ware extreme violence occurs on a daily basis, let alone the risk of having foreign troops intervening or of militias supported by outside quite high.

 

It also allowed me to enrich my experience thanks to:

 

- Continuous and in-depth contacts at the highest level with political and economical authorities including counsellors to the presidency, ministers, senators and members of parliament, top brass civil servants and members of the, captains of industry, entrepreneurs and business people etc.

- A much wider and deeper knowledge of a country where I had my first professional experience some 13 to 15 years earlier (between 1989 and 1991), notably through trips and assignments across the country (in 8 of its 11 provinces), in its eastern part more particularly (Katanga, North and South Kivu and Oriental – Ituri);

- Being an elections observer through the EU’s financial involvement if financing and organising the December 2005 referendum and October 2006 presidential and legislative elections (the first ever over some forty years).

 

F. Logistics management of a major industrial and commercial corporation with as significant operation in the DRC

 

1. Dates: September 1989 – December 1992

2. Lieu: Kinshasa (+Matadi & Lubumbashi), Zaire/DRCongo and Charleroi, Belgium

3. Company and parties involved:

The Roger De Cock Inc. Group (Turnover of € 50 million in 1990) involved in:

- Construction and civil engineering (Travhydro, BPMN, Acier Alexis, Carolo Béton, Entreprises De Cock réunies , trading and procurement (Utema-Travhydro), agro-industry (Charleroi slaughter houses), retails and real estate (Cowalco);

With sister companies in Central Africa: the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, South Africa and the Groupe Travhydro Sarl in Zaire, operating in various sectors:

- Metal works and plastic pipes (Tubetra);

- Construction material, hardware stores, fire-fighting equipment;

- Stationary and office equipment and furniture (MATCO & UNIC)

- Cash & carry as well as retail distribution (Select).

4. Position:

(1) Logistics director of Travhydro SARL, based in Kinshasa until Sept. 1991, than

(2) Seconded to the managing director for African operations, based in Charleroi;

 

5. Responsibilities:

(1) In charge of the re-organisation of the « Imports » department (40 staff), which supplied all the company’s entities (€ 5 million/month) and decide each imported item’s price:

(2) Following the looting and unrest throughout the country in Sept.- Oct. 1991 that very much harmed the company’s activities, I briefly replaced the finance director / CFO before returning to Charleroi and seconded to the MD in reorganising procurement for Zaire;

 

6. Major activities and achievements:

• Reorganisation of the « supplies » department through a gradual computerisation and the setting up of a systematic monitoring of all orders placed by the different entities;

• Reduction of supply costs up to 40%;

• Forwarding and stock reduction of merchandise in transit and under bonding;

• In charge of budget control and financial restructuring of several departments;

• In charge of all relationships with partners, clients and government agencies/ ministries in connection with import licences, customs, transit and bonding;

• Several trips to Lubumbashi and Matadi;

• Training of local staff;

• Coordination of the setting-up a clinic for the personnel.

 

7. Acquired skills and experience:

• Managing an operation including several departments and 40 staff;

• Working in a multi-cultural environment and in contexts often difficult;

• Knowledge of trading and procurement (import licenses, credit letters, forwarding, SGS quality control, bonding…);

• Numerous contacts within the Zairean economy and with makers and wholesalers across the world.

Besides…

• The responsibility of coordinating the setting up of a clinic;

• Making it through during situations in periods of extreme crisis: during the looting, as many a people lives’ were at stake, I was tasked with recover whatever could be and make an initial assessment of the losses and damage at the end of the first week.