Longtime NetMark Partner Nicolaas Pierson Succumbs to Battle with Cancer

NetMark is deeply saddened to announce the death of our longtime partner Nicolaas Pierson, founder and former managing director of SiamDutch Mosquito Netting and Tana Netting Company. Nicolaas passed away on Sunday, 12 August in Blaricum, the Netherlands after a decade-long battle against cancer.

Nicolaas was dedicated to improving the lives of others through innovative mosquito netting products to protect consumers against malaria and other vector-borne diseases. Over thirty years, Nicolaas turned what began as a hobby inspired by his travels through Asia - selling mosquito nets from his university dorm room - into one of the world's leading producers of mosquito nets. His companies have a long history of working in partnership with other organizations in the public and private sectors, such as USAID, NetMark and Bayer Environmental Science, to develop new innovations, including insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) in the 1980s and long-lasting ITNs (LLINs) in 2004.

Nicolaas's commitment to sustainable development is reflected in his efforts to operate SiamDutch and Tana Netting in a socially-responsible manner, both in terms of worker comfort and safety and environmental friendliness. Nicolaas and his team built Tana Netting's state-of-the-art LLIN factory with these principles in mind, which has resulted in a clean and comfortable working atmosphere.

Nicolaas passed away in the company of his loved ones and is survived by his wife and two children.