Six Years KIT Fund: A Farewell Interview with Outgoing Chair Suzette de Boer

Suzette, why did you decide to volunteer your time as chair of KIT Fund six years ago?

From an early age, I have been struck by the inequality in the world. This was one of the reasons why I chose to study Cultural Anthropology, specialising in education in developing countries. My other board positions are also related to education, both in the Netherlands and internationally. Education and knowledge sharing form the basis for sustainable development, whether it concerns economic self-reliance or promoting health. The KIT Fund, as a charitable support foundation of KIT, was a perfect fit.

With scholarships from the KIT Fund, we invest in motivated health workers, doctors, nurses and policymakers from low- and middle-income countries. They are committed to strengthening the health systems in their country or region – an urgent task. Despite significant progress in recent decades, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than half of the world’s population still lacks access to essential healthcare. Every day, people die from preventable or treatable diseases, such as malaria and diarrhoea, or from complications related to pregnancy due to a lack of basic care.