Jobboom presents
The experience of consultants in Burkina FasoWorking abroadEvery year, Africa welcomes hundreds of cooperants and consultants. Whether their interventions turn out to be successful or not is often linked to the quality of the contact they establish with the local populations. |
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 [ 2009-08-12 ] |
In Burkina Faso, a French-speaking country in Western Africa, leaders from the Réseau des caisses populaires du Burkina (RCPB) maintain a solid relationship with microfinance experts from Développement international Desjardins (DID). DID counsellors who are assigned long-term missions in this country agreed to share some of their impressions with us.
“At first, it’s hard to find our landmarks, and achieve balance in our personal and professional life. That is probably why I found the expertise and collaboration of the people of Burkina Faso so useful”, outlines François Bussières, an agroeconomist at DID and appointed for 3 years in Bobo-Dioulasso to support the setting up of a Financial Center for agricultural entrepreneurs by the RCPB. He thinks highly of the Burkina Faso people, describing them as “people who are willing to give and receive, competent and resourceful”.
Thinking schemes abroad are often different than the ones we are used to in North America : “We are very organized and articulate, whereas in Burkina Faso, everything is more cyclical ”, says Claude Martel, who works in the capital, Ouagadougou, to contribute at establishing practices at the Confédération des institutions financières d’Afrique de l’Ouest. By taking this difference into consideration, people understand each other more easily and accommodate better to the challenges that are typical to missions on the field, which sometimes comprise ambitious objectives and short deadlines.
The cultural difference can also benefit to the development of organizations that work together, attests Mr. Martel. “Despite our differences, we have to remain honest with our partners, address issues with lucidity and analyze the consequences linked to specific actions. Sometimes, this can lead to delicate situations, since Burkina Faso people usually stand for each other. The future of the financial cooperative we are supporting can sometime rely on tricky managements decisions.”
Professionals carrying through a mandate abroad may find they have a greater diversity of tasks to accomplish. “Versatility is an essential asset, since our input is needed at various levels, such as strategic and logistic. It is an opportunity to use our full potential and develop new skills,” reports Mr. Bussières.
For those interested to go work in Burkina Faso, these Canadian experts have one advice: remember that no one holds the truth and that teamwork and sharing of knowledge and ideas are the key to a “sustainable development” in communities where the project is on-going. Also, just like in Quebec, a sense of humour is always very useful!
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