48percent.org is the brainchild of Voys. This organization was founded on the values of privacy, equality, and openness. The story for this organization, and eventually 48percent.org, started in 2003.
The founder of Voys went to Haiti to do volunteer work. While there, he witnessed what a lack of access to communication does to a country and its people.
It was there that he was first inspired to devote his work to enhancing access to unrestricted communication. During an internship at TNO, he started building the basic essentials necessary for making this vision a reality. Within a couple of years, this resulted in the foundation of Voys.
Voys is now a successful telecom operator and is driven by the purpose of promoting equality by providing everybody with access to unrestricted communication. In 2019 it was time to leverage what was built over the years and start the biggest endeavor yet: to promote equality internationally with 48percent.org.
Our board
The competent authority is formed by the board consisting of a chairman, secretary and a treasurer:
Mark Vletter (chairman)
Annemieke Doornbos (secretary)
Pollien van Keulen (treasurer)
48percent.org has ANBI status. Below you can find our ANBI policy plan, year reports and financial statements.
Connectivity has the power to act as a potential equalizer in society. At the moment however connectivity is acting like a replicator, or even an amplifier in some cases of social inequalities. Equitable access to connectivity is an important step to turn this around.
There are major obstacles preventing people all over the world from accessing, using and benefitting from the internet. We categorize our work in three program lines to highlight the different aspects of equitable access, such as affordability, digital literacy and safe internet usage.
There is no one size fits all solution, instead solutions should fit the circumstances. We aim to support the sustainable solutions being developed all over the world and help facilitate equitable access to connectivity.
Collaboration is crucial. Making digital exclusion obsolete is a mammoth task that no one can achieve on their own. Collaboration comes in a variety of ways and we are always looking for new ways to work together in bridging the digital divides.