RA International Services

Ahmed Messaoud is our Group Budget Manager. As such, he is responsible for budgeting projects across the group, modelling the contracts, reviewing financials, analyzing forecasts and budgets, and undertaking operational reviews of our projects. Ahmed joined us from General Electric, where he held the position of finance manager in North Africa. Among other things, he brings valuable experience in financial planning and analysis cycles in matrix organizations to our team.

As CFO of RA International, Andrew is responsible for overseeing financing activities, M&A, business planning and forecasting, financial reporting, taxation, audit and process improvement. Upon joining, he managed the implementation of RA International’s enterprise resource planning system, and together with the CEO, he developed a long-term strategic plan which has contributed to a more diverse customer base and significant business growth.

Andrew joined RA in 2011 from Ernst & Young’s Transaction Advisory Services Group where he was primarily responsible for assisting multi-national corporations establish operations in the Middle East and Africa. He is a Canadian Chartered Accountant, Chartered Professional Accountant and a Chartered Business Valuator.

David Marshall is our Group Financial Controller and a qualified chartered accountant with a degree in Accounting and Finance. Based in Dubai, he manages the finance team at Group and local level. He’s responsible for designing, reviewing and implementing all our financial processes and procedures, and for managing our cash flow. He began his career in auditing at KPMG in 2008, before moving on to become a Financial Accountant and Senior Finance Manager for Driver Group Plc. David earned his stripes early on by successfully designing and implementing a month-end management account process that significantly reduced waiting times.

Deepu Sankar is RA International’s IT Manager, responsible for overseeing every aspect of the company’s systems and technology strategy. He also manages our networks, servers, data security, storage, IT support, IT assets, maintenance records, software licensing and IT purchasing needs. Before joining us in 2015, Deepu worked for Emirates Hospital Group in Dubai, and with Arco Turnkey Solutions, among other things. He has a BTech in Electronics and Communication from Anna University in India and an MSc in Network Systems Engineering from University of Plymouth (UK). He is a certified CCNP, CCNA and MCITP professional, with expertise across technical and systems fields.

As Operations Manager, Gary manages the teams who provide life support and essential services to remote mining camps under RA’s contracts in Sudan. He has extensive experience of camp management, having worked in Afghanistan for eight years on MOD & DOD contracts, managing more than 600 staff. In Africa, Gary has worked on mining contracts in DRC and Zambia, as well as in various construction companies in South Africa where he gained experience in civil engineering and construction works. Before taking up his current position in Sudan in June 2017, Gary spent a year as Deputy Facilities Manager at RA International in Mogadishu, managing the 500 tradesman who were providing services to the UN Mission in Somalia.

Gary started his career by doing his National Service with the SADF’s Parachute Battalion Engineers Regiment. He speaks English and Afrikaans.

As Country Manager, Iain is tasked with overseeing the successful delivery of RA International’s projects in South Sudan. Having worked in project management and co-ordination for over twenty years, he has plenty of international expertise in the field.

Career highlights include; managing and recruiting 1,200 African personnel for a US Embassy (DOS) Security Project in Iraq, leading a close protection operation for the National Democratic Institute in Kabul, Afghanistan, and working with a humanitarian start-up to deliver Broadband Networks to Sub-Saharan Africa.

Iain was in the British Army for over a decade and achieved rank of Captain. He received the United Nations Medal and General Service Medal (Northern Ireland) for military service.

Based in Nairobi, John heads up our in-house PMO which manages implementation of construction projects as well as IFM projects with a team of subject experts. His team works closely with Deputy Country Managers in the execution of projects in our operational areas.

In his time with RA International, John has worked across all departments and specialisations and has developed a meritocratic workplace through a target-centric culture. He has focused on developing ambitious yet achievable goals to motivate staff and ensure professional development. John’s background in the Royal Navy working in post-conflict areas makes him especially well placed to work alongside people from diverse cultures, religions and world views.

Judeline Cunningham is our Human Resources Manager. She works closely with line managers to ensure the communication and consistent application of employment conditions, company policies and procedures. She also assists with the development of line management through coaching and training.

Since joining us in 2005, Judeline has developed HR policies and programs for recruitment, talent sourcing, performance and discipline. Based on her own experience, she supports individuals at RA International to grow their careers in a supportive environment, providing them with the resources and opportunities to build on their strengths and develop their talents.

Lars Narfeldt has served for over two decades in pivotal leadership and development roles in some of the world’s most challenging environments. As COO at RA International, he is responsible for day to day operations across the Company. His role also encompasses setting CSR strategy, HR, communications and marketing and compliance. He has been instrumental in developing RA International’s strong brand equity amongst the Company’s clients, geographies and markets.

Lars spent the first 15 years of his post university career working with the Swedish government and the UN. He worked with SIDA in Palestine and with the UN in The Democratic Republic of Congo, Uzbekistan, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan. While in Sierra Leone Lars managed a team of over 2,000 individuals and ran the UN Volunteer Programme.

Mariam is our Talent Acquisition Manager based in Dubai, which means she is responsible for finding the best people for RA International. Her tasks include developing talent acquisition strategies, making plans to hire for current and future positions/opportunities, and of course, managing the actual recruitment and selection processes. With over nine years’ experience of talent acquisition in international environments (earlier roles at Kanoo Group, Petrofac International Ltd and Cerner Middle East, FZ LLC), Mariam is well placed to manage our short and long term hiring needs. She is fluent in English, French and Arabic, and has a degree in Chemistry.

As Country Manager for Somalia, Muhamed is responsible for developing business, delivering great customer service, and recruiting and training managers.

Since joining us in 2014, he has contributed to significant improvements in our way of working. Through the development of a Somalia-based vendor network, he has brought considerable benefits to the local communities in which we operate.

Before joining RA International – initially as Head of Construction - Muhamed worked for companies operating under United States and British government contracts in Afghanistan for close to 6 years. He was born in Bosnia, educated in Bosnia and Turkey, and has qualifications in civil engineering.

Neil Scott is our Head of Engineering. He leads the engineering, project management and construction sectors across RA’s global portfolio. This means pulling together our engineering activities, enhancing our design capability and developing a consistent project management methodology, based on global best practices.

Neil is focused on delivering quality, safety, consistency and a very high level of customer satisfaction within RA’s construction activities, with a right-first-time philosophy. He has experience of leading Engineering focused business operating across the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with organizations such as Mott MacDonald, Kanoo, Jaggard and Logica.

As Legal Officer Rana Dia drafts and reviews our corporate legal documentation and commercial contracts. Working alongside our Chief Financial Officer, she manages the details of our corporate governance documents – cooperating with regulators and operational staff. She also assists with risk management policy and overall corporate compliance.

Prior to joining RA International, Rana worked in the banking department at Al Tamimi & Company in Dubai and in the legal department at Al-Mawarid Bank SAL. Rana has an MBA, Masters of Management from the ESCP-EAP and a BA in Law. She is fluent in Arabic, French and English.

Richard Forrest is our Country Manager in the Central African Republic. His job is to coordinate and deliver quality projects on behalf of the UN mission across CAR. Before joining us, he worked with The Development Initiative in Mali and for New Century Consulting in Kabul, Afghanistan. He brings a wealth of experience of post conflict regions to this role. Richard also served in the British Army for 20 years, and achieved the rank of Major. He holds numerous British Military Instructor qualifications and has been awarded Chartered Member status by the UK Institute of Logistics and Transport.

As Head of Integrated Facility Management Ryan is responsible for developing service and quality initiatives across our global portfolio. Ryan has a strong service background thanks to several years in the hospitality industry, and he also brings valuable experience from the food production, storage and logistics business. More recently, Ryan has been developing life support services in remote locations across Africa – working on sites with up to 20,000 people. At RA, his main tasks are to plan, budget and implement cost-effective services throughout all our operational areas, in accordance with global standards.

As Country Manager, Sandya manages all our projects in Mali, including their execution, delivery and associated logistics. She is a results-oriented, decisive leader with eighteen years’ experience in remote location management, operational planning and development, leadership, implementation, and business development. Her experience spans industries as diverse as civil construction, aviation & logistics, mining and engineering consulting and oil and gas.

Having worked with communities across Southern, Central & West Africa, the Indian Ocean Islands and Afghanistan, Sandya brings a high level of cultural sensitivity and awareness to her role at RA. She speaks fluent English, French, Hindi & Urdu.

Sandya’s formal qualifications include an MBA from Henley Business School, and a Diploma in Business Management from the London Chamber of Commerce & Industries.

Soraya Narfeldt founded RA International in 2004 and has led the company to becoming a leading remote site service provider. Since founding RA International, Soraya has turned the Company into a multifaceted organisation with operations in the Middle East and across Africa, employing over 2,000 staff. In 2018, Soraya identified the need for the Company to take the leap to becoming a public company and led RA International through the process of listing on AIM.

Soraya is a strong advocate and supporter of responsible business practices and community-based enterprises. She is a regular contributor and speaker on the subject to high profile journals and international forums. Soraya also consults widely with government officials in RA International’s countries of operation on issues such as CSR and Aid Funded projects.

As Bid Manager at RA International, Steven leads a multidisciplinary team to produce fully compliant technical and commercial proposals for our clients. His proposals are accurate and cost-efficient, incorporating the latest technology and engineering best practice. Before he joined us in 2016, Steven worked as a bid writer, specializing in Life Support Services for contracts in the Middle East. He began his career in 1989 with the UK Ministry of Defense, and served in several roles across Europe and the Middle East. Steven’s education and qualifications include MCIPS Chartered Institute of Purchase and Supply and qualifications in auditing and commercial principles and practices.

Torsten Schulze is RA’s Supply Chain Manager. His role covers all aspects of the supply chain, including logistics, transport and sourcing from around the world. By optimizing our operational processes, he ensures only quality goods are used at RA’s operations. Thanks to his eighteen years of working in this field, Torsten is an internationally recognized expert. He joined us from Doka, where he was Regional Head of Logistics and Procurement for Middle East & Africa and responsible for procurement in 21 countries.

Trevor Stratford joined RA International in 2011. He has over 20 years’ expertise in business development and brings a deep understanding of remote site service delivery, project management, contract management, technical knowledge and a mindset for client satisfaction. His mandate at RA International is to extend the Company’s geographical reach and most importantly, develop new and existing customer relationships.

Trevor has worked across geographies that encompass South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Senegal, Dubai, Iraq and Brazil. He has commissioned projects in a variety of industries including electrical contracting, security, water treatment, packaging and mining. Trevor has drawn on his diverse experience and knowledge to enhance the implementation and service delivery of RA’s projects.

Vera is our CSR Coordinator, based in Nairobi. She oversees the implementation of RA’s Sustainability strategy and is in charge of our CSR reporting. Before joining us in 2015, Vera worked at a travel company specializing in the promotion of sustainable tourism in developing countries in Africa, Asia and South America. She also did academic research in Kenya – focusing on gender, livelihood transformation and sustainable food production and consumption. Vera has a degree in Development Studies from Lund University, Sweden. She speaks fluent English, German, Swedish and Spanish, and basic French and Kiswahili.

William joined RA International’s executive management team in January 2019 having worked previously as a consultant. He is responsible for growing RA International’s US Government project portfolio and has played a vital role in the Company’s transition to embracing many USG business practices. William reports to the CEO on project development and provides recommendations for strategic investments.

Before RA International, William served for 30 years with the US Navy including acting as Defence Attaché assigned to the US Mission in Somalia. He has held a variety of diplomatic and military roles, and has served as Commander of all Naval forces deployed to Kuwait and Qatar where he was responsible for the employment of over 1,200 US Navy personnel. He has also served as the Naval Liason to the White House under President Bush and Clinton.