Rob van Raaij is a senior expert in Economic Development, Business Development, Private Sector Development, SME Development and Private-Public Dialogue. Sub Expertise in Organizational Development, Institution Development, Trade, Regional Development and Management.

He holds Master Business Administration, Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering and Bachelor in Education, all from Technical University Twente.

Rob consulted international SME Development sector for 40 years and started his international consulting career in 1975. He worked as an advisor and manager in different enterprises, designing, manufacturing and selling equipment for the food processing industry. He also managed advisory departments and organizations, servicing enterprises through training, counselling and consultancy. Services provided by Mr. Van Raaij include:

  • Economic Development: Institution Building of SME Development Agencies, Strategy Development.
  • Private – Public Dialogue; setting up dialogue structures, at different levels, set up strategies and actions leading to Economic Development and Private Sector Development as result of the dialogue.
  • Business Development : individual enterprise development, as consultant and as manager, strategy, production, marketing, sales, design.
  • Project Design and Implementation; preparation of documents to win a tender, preparation of ToRs, evaluation of offers; evaluation of projects; development strategy and activities, Policy Advice and Capacity Building.

Donor experience: EU (Phare, Tacis, accession, ESF, ERDP etc), ILO, EDI, WB, WTO UNCTAD, UNIDO, IFC, Dutch (DGIS), German (GIZ and CIM) Japan (JICA) USA (USAID) Croatian and other bilateral.

Geography experience: Europe: The Netherlands, the European Union and its membership countries (except Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta and Sweden, but including Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia) and further Croatia, German Democratic Republic (DDR), Kosovo, Russia, Serbia, Switzerland, Yugoslavia. Africa:  Cameroun, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Democratic Republic, former Zaire), Egypt, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe. Asia:  Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, Vietnam.

Rob is currently working as an advisor for the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce.