Arjan Erkel

Arjan was born and raised in Rotterdam. He grew up in a close-knit and warm family with two brothers and a sister. During his youth, he played football for Alexandria’66 and boxed at the renowned Rotterdam boxing school Theo Huizenaar.

Doctors Without Borders

After secondary school, he studied logistics management for a year, but then followed his heart and went on to study cultural anthropology at Radboud University Nijmegen. He completed his graduation project on behalf of Doctors Without Borders in a refugee camp in northern Uganda. After graduating, he was eager to return to the field to see more of the world, help people in need and work with international colleagues. However, due to a lack of disasters, there were no opportunities available in emergency aid. After a short period at Robeco, Doctors Without Borders contacted him to ask whether he wanted to return to the field. This led him to Tajikistan, where he worked as a logistics manager for almost two years. He learned Russian and met his future wife, Amina.

Kidnapping

After three more missions in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Sierra Leone, he was able to take on the role of Country Manager for Russia. It was an exciting career step for a 32-year-old to work in the largest country in the world, in one of the most dangerous places at the time. Unfortunately, Arjan became the victim of a kidnapping. Fortunately, he survived this difficult period. After his kidnapping, Arjan took some time to recover. Six months later, he began writing his book "Ontvoerd", which eventually became a bestseller, with more than 70,000 copies sold to date.

Motivational Speaker

He was soon booked as a motivational speaker. Through his survival story, he inspires many people to take action and change or improve their lives. In 2006, Arjan married his Dagestani wife, Amina, and together they celebrated the birth of their daughter, Anna Sophia.