Welcome to Partos! Can you tell a bit more about your background?
Of course, I first studied cultural anthropology. I then spent my entire working life working with great satisfaction in development cooperation. I worked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and then for three member organisations of Partos: Oxfam Novib, SNV and PUM. At SNV and PUM, I have been a director and also a board member. I have lived and worked in Africa, Asia, and Latin America for 25 years.
I am now retired and active as a volunteer. For instance, I am a director of a number of small foundations. However, I am also a mentor, especially for young female entrepreneurs in Asia, and until recently, I have also mentored young talent in the Netherlands. I live in The Hague with my husband, who is originally from Peru. Together, we have three grown-up children.
What wonderful experiences! What lessons do you take away from all this experience?
I learned a lot about development cooperation, and what works and what does not. For example, about the importance of systemic change involving public and private parties. And about the need for demand-driven, locally-led development, management, governance, and leadership. I was able to use this again later on. For instance, I was a mentor for the Top Women talent programme. I mentored a number of Dutch women there who have international leadership ambitions. The nice thing about being a mentor is reflecting on what you have learned. What were my real problems? When and how did I solve them? It is great to be able to share my own experience with others.
Why do you want to work as chairman at Partos?
I feel a strong need to give something back. To give something back of all the experience and knowledge I have accumulated as a director in development cooperation, of everything I have learned, the networks I have built, with many extraordinary people worldwide. At the same time, I realise that it is a huge responsibility and task, in a turbulent time, with a lot at stake, for Partos’ member organisations, and also for vulnerable people in the “global south”. The urgency to do something is great.
Nice that you can share that knowledge like this. You obviously have a lot of substantive knowledge as well. What do you take away from that?
It is important to support demand-driven locally-led development, involving different parties: government, businesses and civil society organisations. You need to pay close attention to power differences, look for shared interests, and promote cooperation in partnerships. Locally available capacity and knowledge is often much greater than people think. Of course, Partos is already working on questions around locally-led development, and Raj Kumar also indicated this desirability during his presentation to the ALV. More substantively, I have also worked on sustainable energy and climate, supporting women entrepreneurs, and promoting diversity and inclusion.
These are exciting times for Partos and the sector. How do you see your role in this?
It is indeed an exciting period, but that is precisely what attracts me. I do want to do a bit more than chair the meeting. But the situation is also really worrying. A number of members are really struggling. That will also affect Partos’ organisation. There are threats in that, but also opportunities. Fortunately, Partos is a strong, dynamic organisation with many members, and people are very interested and committed. They are willing to show solidarity with each other and internationally. Partos and its members have stood firm in actions and publicity, but that was not always sufficiently visible.
Do you have any ideas how you want to go about it?
Partos is already doing a lot of this itself. We need to involve organisations around us, and promote that they also tell the story, in order to influence policy. We do have to be careful not to run in all directions, but keep focus on the effects you want to achieve with your activities.
How do you see your role as chairman?
Then I briefly think of my predecessor Hans, who loves football. I am not much of a football fan, but I was the football coach of my children’s teams in Uganda. Then I had the approach “eyes on the ball”. So, make sure you keep an eye on the goal you want to achieve. For children around five years old, that is quite complicated, but by staying focused on the ball and playing within the lines, they really became a team. As chairman, I want to bring that focus.
In addition, my role is to support the management and Liana. I also find it essential to maintain independence as chairman. I therefore want to monitor the decision-making process well. I want to ensure that decisions are made and communicated well and that the process runs smoothly. I also think the human side is important. I have also personally visited all the board members. But I am also very curious about the members. What do they want? What do they need? I find it interesting to think about what can be achieved by intensifying cooperation between members. Perhaps Partos needs to reinvent itself.
Finally, I want to make clear what the value of Partos is: effective advocacy and good services for members. I want to commit to mutual cooperation, looking outwards for a stronger positioning of Partos and the wider sector, and looking to seize new opportunities together in the future. This is even more important in these times than before.