Niko Pater, Director, SNV Mali

Niko Pater started working for SNV in 1985 as an advisor on community forest programmes in Mali. Twenty four years later, he is back in Bamako as the Director of SNV Mali and Guinea Bissau. He supervises advisory services and manages 98 employees. In addition, he is the head of the SNV Livestock/Pastoralism knowledge network.

Niko's long history with SNV spans both management and advisory services. His previous posts included serving as Senior Advisor for Natural Resource Management in Niger, Programme Coordinator for North Benin, Regional HRM advisor based in Benin, Director of SNV Rwanda and Niger. He holds a BSc. degree in Forestry and a teacher’s certificate in Forestry Education from the Larenstein College of Higher Education, Velp, The Netherlands.

Faoussatou Tadjou, Portfolio Coordinator

Faoussatou has been working for SNV Mali since 2002. She coordinates the activities of the various advisors on the national team. Alongside, Faoussatou also provides advisory services on education and is the leader of the SNV Mali education thematic group. She is from Cotonou, Benin.   

Saskia Brand, Senior Advisor, Basic Services; Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist

Saskia joined SNV Mali in 2008. As an advisor, she mainly works with the Malian Association of Municipalities (AMM) on a programme funded by the Netherlands Embassy. The program facilitates decentralisation by lobbying for the transfer of resources. Saskia advises the AMM on education and health policy. Alongside, she is SNV Mali's M&E specialist. Before joining SNV, Saskia worked as an evaluator for various international organisations, and as a (Africa) sub-regional coordinator for a Winrock International global child labour project. Her other professional experience includes research, teaching, writing and editing. She holds a PhD degree in anthropology from Leiden University (specialisation in gender and urban demographic change in Mali) . 

 Simbo Keita, Senior Advisor, Education

Susan joined SNV in November 2007 as Sr. Technical Advisor for the oilseeds sectors and coordinator of the DERK Program. Before joining SNV, Susan spent eight years as Advisor and Program Director for a number of USAID financed programs in Mali. She also served as technical officer for USAID in Guinea Conakry in the areas of agricultural development, natural resources management, land tenure, and forest management. She has considerable experience in contracts, grants management and administration for international development programs. Susan holds an undergraduate degree (BSc.) in Tropical Forestry and a graduate degree (MSc.) in Management for Agricultural Knowledge Systems from the Wageningen University.

Dr. Koné joined the national team in November 2008. He advises a range of local and national health organisations on decentralisation and policu. He is also the leader of SNV Mali's health thematic group, and thus responsible for supervising interventions in the health sector. Prior to working for SNV, he had spent many years working for the Malian Ministry of Health.

 Assa Souko, Advisor, Education and Gender

A technical engineer by training; Assa started working with civil society organisations 17 years ago. She specialises in sustainable development and gender issues. Assa's past employers include the Association of Women Engineers in Mali, African Women Leaders in Agriculture and Environment and the Programme for Strengthening the Capacities of Civil Society. She has been with SNV Mali since 2006.   

 Neha Sud, Communications Advisor

Neha joined SNV Mali in 2008 as its first Communications Advisor. She manages internal and external communications, strategic planning, and has provided advisory services to Malian organisations. Prior to SNV, Neha worked as the Editor for a UN-aligned NGO in Geneva; a reporter for the CNN-Indian Broadcast Network and as a foreign correspondent for a national newspaper. Her other short-term posts included a news internship at the BBC South Asia Bureau and a consultancy with the National Human Rights Commission of India. She holds a B.A. degree in International Relations and French from Colby College (U.S.A.), and an Erasmus Mundus M.A. in Journalism (specialisation in war and conflict reporting).