stichting Kinderhulp Gambia

What stichting Kinderhulp Gambia does

Stichting Kinderhulp Gambia is a Dutch charitable foundation (stichting) founded in 2003 by Fred and Ivonne Hulsebos after a vacation to Gambia exposed them to extreme child poverty. Operating from Veendam, Netherlands, and registered as an ANBI (Algemeen Nut Beogende Instelling) since January 2008, the foundation delivers small-scale, direct humanitarian aid to Gambian children. Its core programs are the Orthopedic Surgery Mission (since 2018, in partnership with Dutch orthopedic surgeons and the Werkgroep Orthopeden Overzee), the Hernia Mission (pilot launched December 2025 at Westfield Clinic), the Sponsor a Child program (currently 40 children at €10–15/month), the Babymelk Project (supporting 72 motherless infants at Wullinkamma Arribaja Clinic), and a portfolio of completed community development projects including school construction, water systems, and clinic support across multiple Gambian villages.

The foundation operates an all-volunteer model with no paid staff; the Dutch board (Chairman Fred Hulsebos, Treasurer/Secretary Ivonne Hulsebos-Janssen, board members Nel Bien and Thea Woltman) receives no compensation, and Gambian team members (led by coordinator Ousman Jallow) receive only daily allowances and expense reimbursements. The organization has no proprietary technology platform; its 'technology stack' consists of standard digital fundraising tools (a WordPress website, Facebook group, Geef.nl donation platform, IBAN bank transfers, and Doelshop.nl affiliate shopping).

Revenue is generated through a hybrid model: recurring child sponsorship (€10–15/month), one-time donations, fair trade product sales at Dutch fairs and markets, seasonal speculaas biscuit sales, family box shipping fees, and passive affiliate shopping commissions. The foundation distributes funds primarily through direct medical mission execution (orthopedic surgery ~€400/child, hernia surgery ~€350/child), school fee and uniform payments, food and clothing packages, baby milk tins, and infrastructure donations to partner clinics and schools in Gambia. Its beneficiary base is concentrated in vulnerable Gambian children — particularly those with orthopedic disabilities, motherless infants, and children in extreme poverty — while its donor base is the Dutch individual giving community, primarily in the Groningen/Drenthe region.

Name

stichting Kinderhulp Gambia

Legal name

Stichting Kinderhulp Gambia

Website

https://kinderhulpgambia.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Stichting Kinderhulp Gambia is a Dutch ANBI-registered charitable foundation founded in 2003 that delivers small-scale direct humanitarian aid to children in Gambia through orthopedic and hernia surgery missions, child sponsorship, and community development projects. It operates with an all-volunteer staff from Veendam, Netherlands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian Aid and Child Welfare Services

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Child and Youth Services (624110)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Medical Missions & Global Health NGOs (BPAGACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Maternal, Newborn, Child & Adolescent Health (MNCAH) NGOs (HLAJAKAG), Humanitarian Health & Emergency Medical Relief NGOs (HLAJAKAE)

Keywords

• Humanitarian aid services
• Child sponsorship programs
• Pediatric medical missions
• Community development projects
• Nonprofit foundation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Veendam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Child Sponsorship: Monthly recurring donations of €10–15 per month from individual sponsors, who receive photo updates, school fee payments, medical cost coverage, food/clothing packages, and annual outing experiences for their sponsored child. The foundation currently supports 40 sponsored children.
2. One-time Donations: General and project-specific donations from individuals, companies, and institutions, accepted via bank transfer and the Geef.nl platform. The foundation operates without a commercial product line beyond ancillary merchandise.
3. Fair Trade Product Sales: Sale of Gambia-sourced fair trade goods (jewelry, soap, bags, African fabric, wastebins, slippers, baskets, woodcarvings, etc.) at markets and fairs in the Netherlands. Revenue supports the foundation's projects while simultaneously supporting local Gambian families through direct purchases.
4. Speculaas and Family Box Sales: Seasonal speculaas sales (speculaasbrokken €3, gevulde speculaas €3, combi-set €5.75) and annual family boxes (shipping fee €15) sold to Dutch supporters. Part of the speculaas proceeds can be donated to food banks, creating a dual charitable impact.
5. Affiliate Shopping (Doelshop.nl): Passive fundraising through the Doelshop.nl platform, where supporters shop at participating webshops (Bol.com, Coolblue, Hema, Booking.com) and a donation is made to Kinderhulp Gambia at no additional cost to the shopper.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Stichting Kinderhulp Gambia is a Dutch charitable foundation that delivers small-scale, direct humanitarian aid to children in The Gambia, including orthopedic and hernia surgery missions, child sponsorships covering school fees, healthcare, food and clothing, baby milk for motherless infants, and community development projects such as school and clinic construction, water systems and malaria prevention. Its core medical offering is the "Operatiefonds Help a Child – Change a Life" program, which funds and coordinates annual orthopedic and hernia surgery missions performed by Dutch surgeons in partnership with local Gambian hospitals and clinics.

Product overview

Stichting Kinderhulp Gambia operates as a charitable foundation established in 2003 that provides small-scale, direct assistance to children in Gambia. The organization's core offerings consist of two medical surgery programs: the Orthopedic Mission (Operatiefonds Help a Child – Change a Life) providing orthopedic surgeries for children with physical disabilities since 2018, and the Hernia Mission launched in 2025 for pediatric hernia operations. The foundation also runs a Sponsor a Child program supporting 40 children with education and healthcare, a Babymelk Project providing formula milk to motherless babies, and various community development projects including school construction, health center support, and water projects. Fundraising activities include markets and fairs selling Gambian crafts, a speculaas campaign, and a family box shipping program. The foundation maintains operations in both the Netherlands and Gambia with local coordinators and volunteers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Operatiefonds Help a Child – Change a Life (Orthopedic Mission) Annual orthopedic surgery program delivering corrective operations to Gambian children with physical disabilities, executed by Dutch orthopedic surgeons from Werkgroep Orthopeden Overzee in partnership with Kanifing General Hospital and Westfield Clinic at approximately €400 per operation.
• Hernia Mission (Operatiefonds Help a Child – Change a Life) Pediatric hernia surgery program for Gambian children, performed by local pediatric surgeons (Dr. Bah, Dr. Secka, Dr. Baldeh and Dr. Cherno S. Jallow) and anesthetists from Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital at the Westfield Clinic partner facility.
• Sponsor een Kind (Sponsor a Child)

Quantifiable outcome

• 200+ children received life-changing orthopedic or hernia operations since 2018
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Doelshop.nlminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Dutch affiliate shopping platform. Supporters shop at participating webshops (Bol.com, Coolblue, Hema, Booking.com) and a donation is directed to Kinderhulp Gambia at no extra cost. One of the foundation's passive fundraising channels.
• Gambia For YouminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2024Gilze-based freight forwarder for shipping family boxes and goods to Gambia via sea container. Accepts direct box deliveries from supporters and coordinates onward transport to the foundation in Gambia.
• Wullinkamma Arribaja CliniccoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Clinic receiving regular babymelk donations for 72 motherless babies. Foundation has donated hundreds of baby milk tins since 2021. The clinic coordinator is Del Dallimore. Foundation also financially supports baby Issa (2,000 dls/month).
• Mercy ShipscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020International charity operating the world's largest civilian hospital ship. Provided the surgical facility for Haddy Dibba's life-changing gigantism operation in Dakar, Senegal in February 2020. The 18.5-hour operation removed her giant tumor and reduced her oversized foot.
• Suez Recycling and Recovery (IGA Veendam)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2020Donated 2 pallets of 6,600 medical waste bags and 20 new 120-liter waste containers valued at €3,000 for Kanifing General Hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• MF Shipping / Gambia For YouminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2020Freight forwarder that arranged transport of medical supplies from the Netherlands to Gambia. Also a carrier for family boxes from Dutch supporters. Gibraltar-based partner for sea container shipments to Gambia.
• Westfield CliniccoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Private clinic in Gambia serving as the fixed surgical partner for both orthopedic and hernia missions. Provides operating facilities and collaborates with local pediatric surgeons (Dr Bah, Dr. Secka, Dr Baldeh) and 2 anesthetists from Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital, under the leadership of pediatric surgeon Dr. Cherno S Jallow.
• Werkgroep Orthopeden Overzee (Working Group Orthopedists Overseas)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Dutch orthopedic surgeons group (including Ad Ooms, Harry de Vries, Karel Schäffer, Henri van den Hombergh) who voluntarily perform orthopedic surgeries on Gambian children during annual missions. They also transfer knowledge and experience to local medical staff.
• Caringhands Healthcentrum KubunehcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Long-term health center partner in Kubuneh village. Received €5,000 donation in 2011 for medication purchases, building of toilet/shower facilities (€4,000), regular babymelk donations, medical equipment, and ongoing support since 2009. The center coordinates care for children like baby Douwda.
• Kanifing General HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2009Major public hospital in Serrekunda serving ~600,000 residents. The foundation's annual orthopedic missions are conducted at this hospital. The foundation has donated medical equipment including bed screens, sheets, 6,600 medical waste bags (via Suez/IGA Veendam), and other supplies.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Mercy Ships: International medical mission NGO that operated on Haddy Dibba, a Kinderhulp Gambia patient. Partners with Kinderhulp on complex pediatric cases — both deliver surgical care to West African children via volunteer medical staff.

Direct peers

• Compassion Nederland: Dutch arm of a major child sponsorship NGO operating in West Africa. Both organizations recruit Dutch monthly sponsors and provide education, healthcare, and nutrition to sponsored African children.
• SOS Kinderdorpen (Netherlands): Dutch child-focused NGO supporting vulnerable children in Africa through sponsorship and community programs. Overlaps with Kinderhulp Gambia on Dutch-recruited child sponsorship and African field operations.
• Stichting Liliane Fonds: Dutch ANBI-status NGO funding medical care and rehabilitation for children with disabilities in low-income countries — directly comparable in mission, donor model, and target population to Kinderhulp Gambia.

Broad incumbents

• Plan International Nederland: Large established Dutch NGO with similar child welfare, education, and healthcare missions across Africa. Overlaps in target geography and donor base but operates at substantially greater scale.
• Save the Children Nederland: International child-rights NGO with Dutch fundraising presence, operating health, education, and child protection programs including in West Africa. Same donor segment and broad mission overlap.
• Stichting Kinderpostzegels: Well-known Dutch children's charity funding education, health, and welfare projects in developing countries. Targets the same Dutch individual donor segment as Kinderhulp Gambia.
• War Child Nederland: Dutch ANBI NGO supporting children in conflict-affected regions including West Africa. Comparable Dutch-recruited donor base and child welfare mission, though focused on conflict settings.

Regional players

• KidsRights: Dutch foundation focused on children's rights globally, founded in the Netherlands. Shares the Dutch ANBI fundraising model and child-welfare mission, but works through advocacy and grants rather than direct medical missions.

Others

• Stichting Vluchteling (Dutch Refugee Foundation): Dutch ANBI humanitarian aid NGO. Comparable in regulatory standing, all-volunteer fundraising culture, and Dutch donor base, though focused on emergency response rather than long-term child sponsorship.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/401972243188884
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stichting-kinderhulp-gambia

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about stichting Kinderhulp Gambia