Peter Casier: Knowledge Retention Interviews

Rome: World Food Programme (WFP), July 2023.

English

WFPAVI005_1

In this Knowledge Retention Interview former staff member Peter Casier, reflects on his 27 years with the WFP. His career with WFP culminated as the Senior Programme Manager for Telecommunications Security Standards (TESS), which evolved from a project to a global service active in over 90 countries. Originally a printing engineer, Peter’s first significant exposure to IT came during a thesis on digital image processing. He subsequently worked in various IT roles, including at SWIFT, before an Antarctic expedition shifted his career path. His expertise in radio communications developed during this expedition led him to the Belgian Red Cross, and later to WFP in 1996 as a regional ICT Officer in Kampala, Uganda. In Kampala, Peter and his team innovated WFP's communications, creating an email system via HF and VHF radios and developing WFP’s first VSAT network, which drastically improved communication capabilities. This groundwork led to the establishment of FITTEST, the Fast IT Telecommunications Emergency and Support Team, which played a crucial role in numerous global emergencies, including the Afghanistan and Iraq responses post-9/11. In 2018, he returned to WFP to lead the TESS project, enhancing UN staff safety communications. Reflecting on his career, Peter advocates for reducing bureaucracy in emergencies, fostering innovation, encouraging open discourse, and nurturing talent within WFP. He stresses the importance of valuing and mentoring staff to ensure the organization remains agile and effective.

Knowledge Retention Interviews

AVI 005

AV-128774