TheJourneyVolume1 - Book - Page 20
#NextGenUNDP
Mathieu Ciowela Katumba Mateso
Coun tr y o f O r igin:
UNDP Co u n t r y O f f ic e:
Date o f Ap po in tm e n t :
D E M O C R AT I C R E P UBLIC O F C O N GO
BU R K I N A FAS O
M AY 2 019
“THE CHANGE WE WANT WILL
COME FROM OUR
COLLECTIVE ACTIONS.”
I
am from Mbuji-Mayi in the Democratic Republic
of Congo. Although I hold a Master’s degree in
Economic Management, and a post graduate Diploma
in Planning and Economic Development. I never
thought of studying economics when I was growing
up. I was always a hands-on young man who dreamt of
becoming a pilot or an engineer, and I had a particular
interest in Mathematics and Physics, such that I studied
the sciences at high school.
But my student life after high school in Congo did
not start off to plan. Just three months into enrolment,
my university was closed due to strikes and unrest.
Eventually, I left Congo for Dakar in Senegal, in the hope
of pursuing studies in medicine. However, after three
months of waiting to get a university place in medicine,
my enrolment was not confirmed, and I ended up in the
Faculty of Legal and Economic Sciences instead, where I
later graduated with a degree in Economics.
Four years after graduating, I found myself studying
at an institution sponsored by the United Nations. The
professors, technical, and administrative staff, were all
from the UN but of diverse nationalities. This environment appealed to me and evoked in me, a strong interest
in the work of the UN.
FIRST ENCOUNTERS
My first contact with UNDP was via the Ministry of
Planning in Congo, where I had just been recruited, and
UNDP was supporting some projects. Discussions with
the team of experts deployed by the UNDP - including
Mr Kenold Moreau, from the Capacity Building Support
Project - on planning and development issues, reinforced
my desire of working for the organisation. Just a year
after joining the Ministry, I left to work for UNDP as
National Officer in DRC’s Country Office, in charge of
governance and economics.
Part of my motivation for joining UNDP was not only
to contribute to change, but I was also proud of UNDP’s
work in supporting various development issues. As
National Officer, I met a lot of people and was supervised
by several people from whom I learnt a lot.
I started my international journey in UNDP as Deputy
Resident Representative (DRR) and later as Country
Advisor and Country Director.
TACKLING CHALLENGES
Today, I am proud to serve UNDP as Resident Representative in Burkina Faso, a country with a security crisis
which has led to harmful consequences, such as the rise
of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), an increasingly
worrying humanitarian situation and the issue of terrorist-occupied areas. These crises have now been exacerbated by climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The UNDP in Burkina Faso is therefore focusing on
supporting the country in terms of consolidating peace,
national reconciliation and social cohesion. As well as
pledging developmental support, to help the government’s efforts in eradicating inequalities, promoting
justice, the rule of law, and social cohesion, as well as
other the structural transformational needs, to help
improve the economy and stabilize fragile areas in order
to boost local development.
The COVID-19 pandemic is also an opportunity to
strengthen UNDP’s position as a strategic advisor and
much more. Through our Accelorator Labs, UNDP has
promoted innovation and digitalization to boost the
COVID-19 response. And UNDP’s 2.0, through its focus
on four pillars, offers a response that adapts to the context
of each country and helps to build back better. Specifically, this will require the combination of economic, social ›
The development paradigm
is evolving and UNDP in Burkina
Faso focusing on supporting the
country in terms of consolidating
peace, national reconciliation and
social cohesion.”
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