Our monthly check-in with staff from around the world. Learn more about the people who work at CHAI.
René sharing Burkina Faso’s achievements at the CHAI West Africa Management Meeting in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, in April 2024.
René Kaboré
Title: Malaria Program Manager
Location: Burkina Faso
Start date: February 2022
Please tell us a bit about your background and what brought you to CHAI.
I started my career in finance abroad, but after a few years, I felt the desire to return home to be closer to my family and explore something different. I joined the CHAI Burkina Faso malaria program in early 2022. I thought I would solely focus on finance, spreadsheets, and PowerPoint slides— but once inside, I discovered a world where strategy, surveillance, vector control, and commodities access all come together to create impact. It gave me the chance to use what I had learned in a new way, while continuing to grow, contributing to strengthening systems, and improving health for communities back home.
What’s been one of your proudest moments working at CHAI?
One of my proudest moments was in early 2023, during the Global Fund funding request. The country was behind schedule, and we had only a few weeks left. The whole team pulled together and worked until midnight many nights to finalize everything. Contributing to that collective effort—including supporting the Ministry of Health to submit on time and later witnessing the interventions being rolled out to protect families, including our own—was deeply rewarding.
What is your favorite thing about your career?
The constant learning curve. I started out in finance and consulting before joining CHAI, and every step has been a new challenge. It could be logistics one day, data the next, or a conversation about financing or community engagement. You never stop learning at CHAI if you’re open to it, and that makes the work deeply fulfilling.
In your experience, what skills are most crucial to succeeding at CHAI?
Patience! In global health, nothing ever moves as fast as you would like. Creativity is equally important—sometimes the task is to create a three-course meal out of the ingredients for a snack. And above all, you need the ability to keep cool when things go off script (spoiler alert, this happens a lot)! Often, it’s precisely this calm that helps turn a slip into progress, or at least a good story afterwards.
Who is someone you admire, and why?
I deeply admire my father. He has always been kind to everyone around him, not just to our family. His unshakable calm in the most difficult situations has really stayed with me. No matter how complicated things became, he remained steady and thoughtful. I find myself trying to follow that example every day in my work and in my life.
If you were stranded on a deserted island and could only bring three things, what would they be and why?
First, a solar-powered radio with my multimedia library (music and audiobooks) and the ability to record my reflections. It would keep me inspired and let me keep an audio diary of my time on the island. Second, a multi-tool knife with a fire starter, because survival depends on being able to cut, build, and create fire. Finally, I’d bring a pot. My instinct was to say a mosquito net, but I figured I could survive a few bites. But I wouldn’t last long without clean water and food, so the pot wins!
