RTI International Names Cakir Nairobi Office Regional Director

NAIROBI, Kenya – RTI International has named Volkan Cakir regional director of its Nairobi, Kenya office.

As part of the RTI’s commitment to expanding its global reach, the office supports existing projects in Africa and allows the organization to pursue a broader range of opportunities in the region.

“Volkan’s experience and leadership make him a good choice to lead our office in Nairobi,” said Aaron Williams, executive vice president of RTI’s International Development Group. “His experience across many parts of Africa has prepared him well for leading our Africa regional office hub where we are working across the continent to build capacity of local civil society and host-country governments.”

An economist by training, Cakir joined RTI in 2008 and has broad-ranging experience in international development with emphasis in health program implementation and international development project management.

He previously served as RTI’s chief of party for Santénet2, a U.S. Agency for International Development-funded community health program that RTI led assisting Madagascar in meeting its goals to improve health outcomes and expand the reach of health services to its remote communities.

While leading Santénet2, Cakir and a colleague spent three days hiking 80 kilometers through the mountains of Madagascar to gain first-hand insight into the difficulties faced by local people in gaining access to healthcare. On his trek, Cakir visited several RTI-supported community health volunteers, and documented his experiences.

“I’m very pleased to be such an integral part of RTI’s commitment to the people of Africa,” Cakir said. “Along with the experienced team already in place, I look forward to building on the success of our work in the region.”

The Nairobi office opened in October of 2012 and serves as RTI’s African region hub, providing services to more than 35 projects in Africa related to healthcare, education, governance and more. The office, located in the Westlands area of Nairobi, also provides decentralized services to improve project operations.