About Us

GOAL 3 is a social enterprise founded in 2019, by people who are deeply engaged with the wellbeing of people worldwide.
Our name is a tribute to sustainable development goal 3: “Good health and well-being”. We are determined to make a positive global impact by improving healthcare on a systemic level.

Millions of children die each year because they did not get adequate and timely care. The majority of these deaths occur in low-resource settings. One of the biggest challenges in reducing the number of children dying is to recognize problems such as severe infections in an early stage. Shortage of staff and lack of suitable equipment are important contributing factors to this problem. This is something GOAL 3 founder Niek Versteegde experienced first hand while working in a rural hospital in Tanzania.

When I think back to working in Tanzania, I remember patients who died on my watch. Especially the deaths of children were heartbreaking. To know that 10 times more children die before the age of 5 in low resource settings compared to western settings is staggering. When you see it happen in real life it wipes you of your feet. To lose a child because of delays in diagnosis and treatment is something no-one should experience.

Niek Versteegde​

This experience has led to a strong determination and drive to find solutions to this problem. When founders Bart Bierling and Niek Versteegde met, it soon led to fruitful discussions about the role and possibilities for technology to improve healthcare in low resource settings. This early collaboration led to the erection of the social enterprise/startup GOAL 3.

The team

Niek Versteegde

CEO

As a tropical doctor I experienced first hand what it means to make an impact. Unfortunately I have also seen dozens of children die from conditions which could have been treated easily. These experiences drive me every day to make a success of GOAL 3.

Bart Bierling

CTO

I started designing the first patiënt monitor for low-resource settings, because I believe there is a need for medical devices designed specifically for that context since the current systems don’t suit their needs. I want to create user-centered systems that help to diagnose patients earlier.

Jelle Schuitemaker

COO

As a young entrepreneur and innovation manager, I am passionate about social-technical innovations that can make a real long-term change in the world and disrupt a market. For me, with GOAL 3, we can make this change towards a world where fair and accessible healthcare is the standard!

Kevin Gerrits

CFO

During my 15 years in financial services, my personal urge arose more and more to contribute to society with my acquired knowledge and experience. As my interest in various sustainable development goals has grown strongly during this period, GOAL 3 came at the right time.

Tijs Versteegde

Systems
architect

While working on purely commercial products has been a fun challenge, visiting Niek in Tanzania some years back, put the idea in my head that I wanted to contribute more to the world. So when he told me about this endeavor he started with Bart, there was no doubt that I would love to use my experience to do exactly that!

Rachel Loop

Head
of Quality

As a Biomedical Engineer and Industrial designer, I strive to build a bridge between the work of health-workers, designers and engineers to create innovative health-tech solutions through collaboration in multidisciplinary teams. At GOAL 3 I found a unique path to do exactly what I aspire for a very good societal cause.

Balt Leenman

Business
advisor

During all of my career I have been working on innovative technology. At this phase of my life I enjoy sharing my experience with young entrepreneurs. GOAL 3 is a great idea, a paradigm shift for healthcare! I especially appreciate the focus on the least fortunate people. I can leverage my experience and network in East Africa.

Martin Macharia

Senior full stack
developer

My passion for technology started the first time I interacted with a computer. I knew it’s what I wanted to do. Build solutions that help improve or in one way or another, have a positive impact in people’s lives. GOAL 3’s mission and product are inline with my objectives and has provided me another opportunity to continue in the same path.

Annelot van Halder

Head of
people

During my studies Organizational Psychology, I developed a fascination for new ways to form teams based on employees’ talents and needs. As Head of People within GOAL 3, an organization that has such an inspiring mission, my professional ambitions meet my personal aspirations to make an impact.

Femke Kriekaard

Junior Product
developer

I want to create a better world. GOAL 3 allows me to do this. As a young designer, I am able to work in a company with an awesome mission while finishing my study. Through these opportunities, I can follow my dream and already work on making a difference.

 

Jori Spierings

Graphic
design

In 2015 I visited Niek in Tanzania and followed him during his clinical duties. This made me aware about the huge challenges of these settings. Unable to contribute at that time I was happy to join GOAL 3 to help to visually communicate the inspiring mission.


Stefan Vermij

Web
designer

Since I can remember I have been fascinated by human-computer interaction and have been striving to create an optimal user experience. Therefore I was happy to accept the challenge when Annelot approached me if I would like to design and maintain the GOAL 3 webpage.

Nathan van der Putten

Data science intern

While nearing the end of my masters in data science I started to think about what I wanted to do after graduating. Novel high tech systems and complex programs sound interesting, but I soon realized what I wanted most was to have a positive impact on the world. When I heard about GOAL 3 and how they want to apply data science to save lives, I immediately knew this was the right place for me

Open vacancy

Want to contribute? 

Contact us for all vacancies.