16/06/2025
For the very first time, **Senior Expert Contact (SEC)** – part of the Swiss NGO **Swisscontact** – brought together its Dutch volunteer experts in the Netherlands. These dedicated professionals represent a wide range of sectors, including hospitality, agriculture, industry and more. Though they often work individually on assignments abroad, they share one mission: transferring their knowledge to strengthen local capacities in emerging economies.
Despite their shared values and expertise, these volunteers rarely meet. Operating as individuals across different continents, they lack regular opportunities to connect, share experiences, or learn about the broader impact of their efforts within the global SEC framework.
A networking meeting in Utrecht was organized – a first-of-its-kind initiative in the Netherlands. It offered a platform not only for personal connection and professional exchange, but also included a valuable session on how Swisscontact applies impact measurement tools to assess and improve the effectiveness of development cooperation
The meeting fostered new professional connections, increased the sense of purpose and motivation among the volunteers, and enabled cross-sector knowledge sharing. It reinforced a shared vision: that expertise, when exchanged meaningfully, can make a lasting difference in the communities SEC supports.
I enjoy being Senior Expert already for many years. See www.seniorexpertcontact.org for more information if you should like to become an expert also.