René van Lieshout

René is senior program manager and a WASH generalist with experience as manager of large programmes and in the role of advisor for the water sector. René is by education a sanitary engineer and has 32 years of experience related to development cooperation in water supply, sanitation, and water resource management in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. His expertise ranges from developing urban infrastructure to participatory appraisals with community members; from action research of rural water supply service delivery models to piloting biological wastewater treatment plants. In the period prior to his retirement in 2023 René's time was divided between developing IRC's WASH System strengthening approach further, supporting IRC (country) teams and evaluating water sector programmes for external clients.