Jean-Paul Rychener is the Deputy Head of Information Management. As such he is responsible for following up the field situation and is directly involved with regards to IMSMA deployment and implementation in focus countries. He also acts as the liaison officer for Mine Action Programmes in Africa and maintains close working relationships with IMSMA hosting nations, potential partners, regional UN agencies and NGO organisations active in mine action within the region. Besides, he is the Unit’s focal point with activities involving French speaking capacity.
Before taking over the responsibility of Deputy Programme Manager Jean-Paul was the regional coordinator for IMSMA in Central Africa. Prior to that he was seconded to the GICHD by the French government, as a mine expert. He was responsible for stockpile destruction, IMSMA implementation and testing, and the deployment/training for the EOD IS Survey data collection tool.
Having served as Senior Engineer officer in the French Army for 32 years, he has a strong experience in the field and at headquarters level, including various missions and deployments abroad, including Chad, the Central Africa Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Eritrea and Ethiopia. He also participated in several UN and NATO missions, dealing with polluted areas and clearance work.
