Judith Hulst

YEP period 2016 - 2018, batch 7

Young Expert at SNV - Rwanda

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First position after YEP

Advisor horticulture at SNV Rwanda

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YEP Role

I worked as a Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) advisor at SNV, in the USAID funded project Gikuriro or ‘Integrated Nutrition and WASH Activity (INWA)’.

 

Gikuriro is implemented through a consortium of two international agencies; Catholic Relief Services (CRS) who is the prime and SNV, the Netherlands Development Organization. SNV led the implementation of Gikuiro’s WASH interventions in 8 districts.

 

The goal of Gikuriro was to improve the nutritional status of women of reproductive age and children under five years of age, with an emphasis on the 1,000 day window of opportunity from pregnancy until a child’s second birthday. Gikuriro’s strategy is to reinforce Government of Rwanda (GoR) nutrition and WASH efforts, mobilizing civil society and the private sector to accelerate progress toward the national goal of eliminating malnutrition, a key priority in Rwanda. Gikuriro works through existing structures to strengthen the capacity and coordination of government, civil society and private sector actors in eight districts to achieve full coverage of the two complementary GoR community-based programs: Community-based Environmental Health Promotion Programs (CBEHPP) and Community-based Food and Nutrition Program (CBF&NP).

 

In my role as WASH advisor I worked on the following activities:

• Conduct training of trainers on CBEHPP for eight districts
• Conduct training of sector and health staff on CBEHPP for eight district
• Assist and support the district team to prepare and train Local Civil Society Organizations (LCSOs) on CBEHPP
• Assess barriers and facilitators (including gender factors) to adoption of improved hygiene and sanitation practices
• Assess household drinking water treatment accessibility and safe storage options

Click here for more information about my project.

 

Skills

Regarding my study and former job experiences I have a high affinity for nutrition, health and agrofood related subjects. Through these experiences I am also comfortable to behave and communicate in intercultural settings.  Although I am a team player and think team work is fundamental, not only for projects but also for professional and personal growth, I can also work independently very well. Furthermore I take pride in being very accurate, conscientious and persevering; when something needs to be done I take responsibility and achieve the desired results.

 

Background

Nationality: Dutch
Education:

• Master Nutrition and Health, Wageningen University, Netherlands, specialization: Nutritional Physiology and Health Status
• Bachelor Nutrition and Health, Wageningen University, Netherlands

 

Experience before YEP

• Assistant agribusiness advisor Rwanda (11/2015 – 12/2015). Agriterra, Musanze, Rwanda. Identifying stakeholder networks and scoping of new potential clients in the dairy sector in Rwanda. Assist during preparation and realisation of advisory missions in Rwanda.
• Junior project manager Development and Innovation (02/2013 – 10/2015). East Netherlands Development Agency Oost NV, Apeldoorn, Netherlands. The business unit Development and Innovation is forming strategic alliances to turn research into innovative concepts and products that benefit the regional economy. Clients are mainly innovative Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and knowledge institutes.
• Research assistant (11/2012). Wageningen UR, department of Human Nutrition, Netherlands. Helping in the kitchen with a controlled nutritional intervention.
• Intern (06/2012 – 10/2012). Wageningen UR Food & Biobased Research, Netherlands. Interviewing and physically testing the elderly in nursing homes (project: ‘Genieten aan tafel’). Performing a research about eating behavior in persons over the age of 55, by making, sending and analyzing interviews.
• Intern (11/2011 – 04/2012). University of Newcastle, Priority Research Center in Physical Activity and Nutrition, Australia. Writing a systematic review, title: ‘Weight management interventions targeting young women: a systematic review’. Assisting with the development and implementation of an eHealth intervention for young overweight women, to prevent their progression to obesity through modest weight loss.
• Research assistant(02/2011 – 05/2011) Tamale, Ghana (via Wageningen University). Working in a research among primary school children who received iron fortified cowpea-based meals: preparing and handing out meals, measuring children, testing them for malaria and interviewing parents. This was the practical work for my Master thesis, titled: ‘The association of morbidity, malaria and hemoglobin levels after 6 months consumption of iron fortified cowpeas by primary school children in northern Ghana’.