I was born and raised in the Netherlands. During the 1600s and 1700s, the Dutch were active here, building forts, trading, and influencing local culture. That is why we chose the name Beyond the Dutch: to respect the past, but also to show that we are building something new, moving beyond history toward a future built on care, equality, and sustainability.
After completing my bachelor’s degree and gaining experience in Business Development, I expanded my horizons through extensive travel across Europe, Asia, Africa, North and South America, and New Zealand. I also worked for two years in China, gaining professional experience in an international environment. With this global background, I chose in 2021 to move to Sri Lanka, seeking a long-term professional challenge and a meaningful life experience.
Through a diaspora family, who had spent most of their lives in Switzerland, I was asked to manage and develop their agricultural project. This brought me to Kilinochchi, in the north of Sri Lanka, a region I knew only from news reports during the civil war that ended in 2009. Choosing to work here meant choosing challenge over comfort. The district, historically famous for agriculture, had been left behind after the war: poverty, lack of industry, and many single women struggling to support their families.
From this starting point, it became clear that the work went far beyond farming. It was about empowerment, skills development, and community building. We began to see how livelihoods could be rebuilt, how families could regain stability and how single heads of households could step into new roles in society.
In January 2024, we registered Beyond the Dutch as an NGO in Sri Lanka, and soon after in Switzerland and the Netherlands. The name reflects not only the Dutch historical connection and agricultural expertise, but also my own role as the first director and the wish of the founding family for a Dutch identity in the organisation.
With Beyond the Dutch, we are building livelihoods, strengthening families, and inspiring communities.
Lieke Schröder
Founder & Director, Beyond the Dutch
To empower single-household women, girls, and children in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka by providing access to SME education, skills development, environmental awareness, and sustainable living practices. Through these initiatives, we aim to implement lasting programs that support the long-term growth and well-being of each beneficiary and their families.
A self-reliant, resilient, and thriving Northern Province where women, girls, and children lead empowered lives, contribute to sustainable communities, and break free from cycles of poverty.
We are guided by the values of empowerment, sustainability, and equity, placing women and children at the heart of everything we do. We believe in nurturing growth through education and skills development, fostering resilient communities through environmentally conscious practices, and working with integrity, transparency, and deep respect for the people we serve.
Lieke Schroder
Chairperson
Simply getting funds, engaging in several projects, and then moving on to the next one in six months’ time is not how we seek to do this. Our core aim is to maintain a sustainable approach with what we do. If we get a farmer or a single-household mother involved in an agribusiness initiative, we aim to ensure that they go the distance and self-sustain themselves for years to come.
A change in mindset and empowering them in terms of gaining an entrepreneurial and ambitious outlook in what they do is also important for us in order to achieve this.
In simple terms, our goal is to support our beneficiaries by providing them with access to loans, work opportunities and markets for their products.
We want to help them build their own businesses and livelihoods and become self-reliant and prosperous. This is how we envision our partnership with these communities.
Chairperson
Vice Chairperson
Admin & Operations
Admin & Operations
Empowering communities, single-household women, girls and children, in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka through SME Education, Skills Development, Environmental Awareness and Sustainable Living.
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