Humanity
Watoto Foundation
Watoto Foundation Tanzania was founded in 2003 and is dedicated to supporting street boys in and around Arusha.
Initiatives
Fred Foundation supports a variety of third-party initiatives from large to small, in the Netherlands and elsewhere. We choose initiatives that help make tomorrow’s world a nicer place.
Our themes
The initiatives we support fall under three themes, each with their own specific points of attention.
The Fred Foundation’s work is underpinned by the view that everything on the planet is inextricably linked. Our efforts are committed to more stable ecosystems, where nature is given space to recover and develop. On the one hand, we focus on ‘turnaround initiatives’ that counteract pollutants such as pesticides and plastics on the other, we target ‘constructive initiatives’ that offer new courses of action such as rewilding, regenerative agriculture and drinkable rivers. This is how we want to help accelerate the change processes.
Fred Foundation is committed to ensuring a dignified existence for everyone. In the world we live in now, the family or country you are born into largely determines the opportunities you get. We want to help reduce that inequality and we back initiatives that play a real part in improving the lives of our fellow humans from humanitarian aid to projects that can change the system, nationally and internationally, large and small.
Because refugees face specific issues, we have set up a separate sub-theme for this issue within our theme of Humanity.
People in challenging circumstances
Fred Foundation supports organizations that are committed to helping people living in vulnerable circumstances. In the Netherlands, we focus on initiatives that promote equal opportunities and strengthen social cohesion within communities.
As of 2025, within the theme of Humanity, the foundation will partially shift its focus to initiatives in Africa. Africa has the fastest-growing population in the world, with two-thirds under the age of 25. This presents a vast potential to address local challenges from within.
Fred Foundation prefers to support initiatives that are rooted in and led by local African communities, particularly in the fields of education and social justice — especially those that still have limited access to funding.
We work as much as possible on a trust-based model, providing unearmarked support. Our geographical focus lies on two regional clusters: East Africa (Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania) and Southern Africa (Madagascar, Mozambique, Zimbabwe).
Refugees
Every day, people flee their homes and communities because of conflicts, violence, human rights violations and persecution. Their prospects on the road and in their host countries are often far from rosy. We take a holistic view of migration and search out initiatives that play a part at all levels in safeguarding the human rights of refugees. That’s how we work towards systemic change and stronger backing. We assist projects that offer concrete help at the psychosocial, legal or integrational level. We also fund emergency relief where sustainable change will not be available in time. A leitmotif running through all these topics is the need for connection.
How can we take proper care of our society’s well-being? (Investigative)
Initiatives
A selection of the initiatives is given below. A summary of all initiatives can be found here.
Besides the various initiatives in each theme, you will also find more information about our own initiatives here.
Public interest
RFG Magazine
Support and guidance of journalists with a refugee background on their path to a stronger position in the Dutch labor market.
Public interest
Media Defence
Media Defence provides legal help to journalists, citizen journalists and independent media across the world.
Public interest
Reporters without Borders
Promoting the freedom, pluralism and independence of journalism:
Humanity
Inspire Teenagers Foundation
A grassroots organization dedicated to supporting vulnerable adolescents and teen mothers in the arid and semi-arid regions of Kenya, with a focus on survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV).
Humanity
Wanawaka Wavuvi Foundation (WA-WA)
Stop ‘sex for fish’: WA-WA trains women along lake Victoria (East-Africa) to no longer trade sex for fish in order to generate income for their families.