Holland Alumni Conference 2011
16 Jun 2011
The second Holland Alumni Conference took place on 26 and 27 May. This event is financed by both the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The main goal of the conference was to stimulate and strengthen the exchange of knowledge and information.
In addition, the aim was to create a firm body of 'Ambassadors for the Netherlands'. Two hundred Holland Alumni, including more than one hundred NFP alumni, were invited to attend a varied programme.
On the first day, the alumni were divided in groups to take part in a case study competition in various fields, including:
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food security;
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gender;
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IT;
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sustainability and water management.
Workshops
The second day was filled with workshops on a range of topics such as:
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transferable skills;
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personal branding and networking;
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presentation skills;
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gender;
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NFP alumni impact evaluation.
Putting it in the picture
For the final workshop, on impact evaluation, Nuffic produced a short five-minute video about two NFP alumni from Colombia and Uganda and an alumnus from India. You can watch the video below.
Before the conference, all the participating NFP alumni received a questionnaire about the effects of their training in the Netherlands on their professional careers, their employing organisations and their social lives. The employers of the alumni were also invited to give their view on the impact on their organisation.
NFP meets its goal
Overall, the results of the questionnaire show that the NFP meets its goal of strengthening organisations in developing countries. Almost every alumnus applies the knowledge and skills gained during their studies in their daily jobs.
The employing organisations also benefit in a number of ways. For example:
- Alumni are promoted.
- Knowledge is shared among colleagues.
- Activities are done in a more efficient way.
Impact at the national level
Knowledge sharing reinforces the impact and reach of the NFP, which can also make a contribution at the national level. For example:
- In Nigeria, a midwives service scheme has been set up.
- In Ethiopia, an ecocity project was developed to upgrade the slum areas.
- In Ghana, research on the use of agricultural products to produce renewable energy has been carried out for the national agricultural advisory service.
After a presentation of the results of the impact of the NFP, a discussion was held with the NFP alumni. This gave the ministry and Nuffic the possibility to gather information about the actual impact of the training in the Netherlands on the careers and lives of the NFP alumni.
Finally, the discussion gave input on policy issues that may influence the structure and content of the fellowship programmes in the near future.
