Top global development employers in Brussels: A primer

Jose Graziano da Silva had the attention of nearly 200 policymakers in the room and 140 more people online as he discussed, for probably the nth time, his brainchild and Brazil’s highly successful flagship nutrition program called Zero Hunger. It happened June 15, a fortnight before he was elected to helm the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization, but more than 700 miles from the Italian capital. Da Silva was participating in a Brussels Development Briefing on nutrition security, one in a series of gatherings focused on poverty reduction and economic development in Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific region. No wonder these events draw an influential crowd: The EU – one of the world’s largest donors of development aid – is right around the corner, as is the Belgian aid agency. Brussels itself has somewhat of a split personality: Tourists crowd the narrow cobble-stone streets of the old city center, while EU lawmakers and lobbyists tend to stick to what is referred to as the European Quarter. Few non-governmental organizations and consultancies are headquartered in Brussels, although many operate small offices there to network with EU lawmakers and procurement officials. Here is a look at some of the Brussels-based organizations engaged in foreign aid work. For vacancies with these and other organizations, check out the Devex jobs board, the most comprehensive online database of its kind. For business opportunities with the EU and other aid organizations, check our projects & tenders database. ACP Secretariat Type: regional organization Founded: 1965 Secretary-general: Mohamed Ibn Chambas The ACP Secretariat is the administrative arm of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States, a bloc comprising signatories of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement with the European Union. It monitors the implementation of this sweeping treaty, and works closely with ACPpolicymakers, including the Summit of ACP Heads of State and Government, Council of Ministers and Committee of Ambassadors. Twice a year, representatives meet for the week-long ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly to discuss economic cooperation and poverty reduction. The ACP Secretariat offers a small number of grants. AGRER Type: consultancy Founded: 1959 Managing director: Robert Couturier AGRER performs studies and renders assistance in the design and implementation of international cooperation projects. Its focus areas include agriculture and rural development, the environment, institutional strengthening and logistical support. It has worked in projects funded by the European Union, regional development banks, United Nations specialized agencies, and the World Bank. Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO) Type: financing institution Founded: 2001 CEO: Hugo Bosmans Although backed by capital from the Belgium government, BIO works as a private company and enjoys operational independence from the state. The organization directly invests in private sector projects that will have long-lasting impact on the development of low-income and emerging economies. BIO says it strives to ensure that its assistance will not come into direct competition with locally available financial products and services. Africa currently is the largest beneficiary of BIO investments. Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Type: government agency and bilateral donor Founded: 1831 Deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs and institutional reforms: Steven Vanackere Minister for Development Cooperation: Olivier Chastel The ministry oversees the country’s official development assistance, which amounted to $3 billion in 2010. This represents 0.64 percent of Belgium’s gross national income, slightly shortof the internationally agreed-upon target of 0.7 percent of GNI. Business and Strategies Europe Type: consultancy Founded: 1991 Director-general: Rafael Comenge B&S Europe provides capacity building services in a wide range of areas such as rule of law, democracy and governance, European integration, regional development and structural funds, economic development, employment and social affairs, and communication. It has regional offices in Bucharest, Dakar and Manila as well as project offices in Benin, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Kosovo, Macedonia and Suriname. Its clients include private organizations, bilateral agencies and multilateral donors such as the European Commission and World Bank. Development and Cooperation Directorate General – EuropeAid Type: donor agency Founded: 2011 Director-general: Fokion Fotiadis DG DEVCO is the EU’s international cooperation policymaking and implementation arm. Its decisions carry enormeous weight given the EU’s status as one of the world’s largest donor of development aid. The agency operates under the guidance of European Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs. DG DEVCO works increasingly closely with ECHO, the EU’s humanitarian aid agency, on ensuring sustainable development for crisis-prone countries. European Commission’s humanitarian aid department (ECHO) Type: donor agency Founded: 1992 European commissioner for international cooperation, humanitarian aid and crisis response: Kristalina Georgieva While DG DEVCO focuses on longer-term development cooperation, ECHO focuses on crisis response. But ECHO does more than just provide EU emergency assistance to victims of natural and manmade disasters worldwide. It also conducts feasibility studies for its humanitarian operations, monitors humanitarian initiatives, coordinates disaster prevention measures, renders technical assistance to its partners, and funds network and training schemes on humanitarian aid. It says it provides its partners with grants amounting to €700 million ($1.02 billion) per year, which benefit some 18 million people around the globe. European Consultants Organization Type: consultancy Founded: 1992 Managing directors: Jean-Paul Delattre and Christian Linck An ISO 9001-certified company, ECO provides technical assistance to civil society and in the areas of governance, justice, program and facility management, public administration reform, public financial management, and trade and economic development. It has been involved in nearly 500 projects worldwide. ECO has regional offices in Mauritius, Romania, Slovakia, Russia and Turkey and boasts in-house expertise that can provide services rendered in English, French, Spanish, Swahili, Kinya-rwanda, Croatian, Dutch, German, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Turkish. European NGO Confederation for Relief and Development (Concord) Type: NGO confederation Founded: 2003 President: Justin Kilcullen Concord is considered a development power broker in Europe. It serves as the voice of more than 1,600 European NGOs in aid-related discussions with EU institutions. Its AidWatch group, which has the backing of the European Commission, publishes an annual scorecard that charts the progress of the 27 EU member states. Learn more about Concord’s advocacy work and membership benefits. Transtec Type: consultancy Founded: 1983 Managing director: Alexandre de Buck Transtec offers technical cooperation services to public, private and civil society organizations in emerging economies, with a focus on governance. It has carried out more than 1,000 donor-funded studies and projects in 120 countries since its inception. Its annual turnover totals €30 million. Other notable aid groups in Brussels ActionAid Belgium ADRA Belgium AEDES Agriconsulting APRODEV Association of European Development Finance Institutions Association of Voluntary Service Organizations Baastel Be-cause health Belgian Bankers Academy BIEF Cardno Emerging Markets, Belgium Caritas Belgium Center for the Development of Enterprise Centre national de coopération au développement CIDSE Coopération Missionnaire au Développement Counterpart International Belgium Ecorem EU Civil Society Contact Group EU-CORD European Association of Development Agencies European Federation of Engineering Consultancy Associations European Network on Debt and Development International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection International Labor Organization Brussels International Organization for Migration Belgium International Planned Parenthood Federation European Network International Rescue Committee Belgium Kantor Management Consultants KEA King Baudouin Foundation Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung European Office KPMG Belgium Marie Stopes International Belgium Médecins du Monde Belgium Médecins Sans Frontières Belgique Microfinance Networking Facilitators Open Society Institute–Brussels Oxfam Solidaterite Plan International Belgium Research and Independent Non-governmental Organizations to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Sogerom Solidarité Socialiste TAS Europrojects Transparency International Belgium Trias United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe Voluntary Organizations in Cooperation in Emergencies WWF Belgium Women in Development Europe Did we forget any major aid organization based in Brussels? 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