Anton A. Jozef "Jef" Van Bilsen (13 June 1913–24 July 1996) was a Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 professor who, in December 1955, proposed a thirty-year plan for creating a self-sufficient independent state out of the Belgian Congo

Belgian Congo

The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...

. The timetable called for a gradual change over 30 years, the time he estimated it would take to create an educated elite

Elite

Elite refers to an exceptional or privileged group that wields considerable power within its sphere of influence...

 to administrate the new Congo. His plan never came to fruition after Congolese nationalists demanded immediate independence, leading to the Congo Crisis

Congo Crisis

The Congo Crisis was a period of turmoil in the First Republic of the Congo that began with national independence from Belgium and ended with the seizing of power by Joseph Mobutu...

.