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Interview with Dr. Andrea Jost [09.09.13]
In May 2013, the new executive manager, Dr. Andrea Jost, was warmly welcomed into the FSC team. Dr. Jost was born in Saarland, the smallest Federal State of Germany. And although she left her parents’ house at the age of 19, Saarland still remains her home. Since then, she has spent her student and professional life in various parts of Germany and the world. Presently, Dr. Jost is living with her husband and her daughter in Heidelberg, a beautiful town with many of students and tourists from all over the world. In a short interview Dr. Jost answered some questions about her career and future work at FSC.
What drove your decision to apply for FSC’s executive management position?
Food and nutrition security have been major topics of interest to me for many years. The position would give me the opportunity to increase my experience within the field of food and nutrition security from the perspective of research.
What are your main tasks at FSC?
My main task is managing and coordinating all FSC activities. In particular, I am responsible for administration and personnel management, the preparation of meetings between FSC entities, the selection of candidates for specific scholarships, the communication between FSC partners in Africa, Asia and Latin America and the preparation and coordination of the PhD program.
In which countries of the world have you been?
I have travelled throughout most countries of Central and Southern Europe. During my work in Africa I also visited many countries, so that I managed to cover quite a lot of West- and East-Africa: Senegal, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali, Burundi, Ruanda, DR Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Chad, and Cameroun.
Besides these, I also travelled to Colombia, Georgia and the Philippines.
Did you ever work in these countries?
Throughout my professional career, I found myself addicted to Africa. My first experience after university was in Somalia, where, after 3 years, I had to leave due to the start of the civil war. During my PhD studies, I went back to Africa and lived in Northern Ghana for 3 years. And after the completion of my PhD, I went to Tanzania for 6 years. More recently I worked in Burundi for 5 years. The only opportunity I received to work outside of Africa was a 6-month contract as a consultant in Georgia.
Which country is your personal favorite? Why?
I do not have a favorite country. However, I am still very much attracted to Tanzania. The 6 years I spent there marked many important phases within my personal life; my marriage and creating a family. In my experience, living as a family in a foreign country for longer periods of time can create very intense and long lasting relationships with the local community.
What are your main goals concerning your work at FSC?
There is one goal for the FSC: Assuring its continuation within the Exceed Program of the DAAD/BMZ!!
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