No profit distribution
Any surplus is applied exclusively to the realisation of the corporate purpose (Article 3). No profit or asset may be distributed to members, directors or any other person.
Organisation profile · English
ActiveLife VZW
A Belgian non-profit association working to prevent childhood drowning and to improve water safety among children and young people in the Antwerp region.
This page is written in English for partners, funders and verification bodies. The Dutch pages are the primary version of this site.
Legal identity
Who we are, legally
- Legal name
- ActiveLife VZW — vereniging zonder winstoogmerk (non-profit association)
- Enterprise & VAT number
- BE 1037.980.172 (Crossroads Bank for Enterprises)
- Legal form
- VZW under the Belgian Code of Companies and Associations (WVV) of 23 March 2019
- Registered office
- Julius De Geyterstraat 268, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
- Register
- RPR Antwerp, division Antwerp — deed filed with the Enterprise Court of Antwerp
- Incorporated
- 13 May 2026
- Country of operation
- Belgium — city of Antwerp and surrounding municipalities
- Chairman & founding director
- Abdelmouhsen Rakraki — abdel@activelifevzw.be
- Board
- Listed publicly on this site and in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises
Mission
Preventing childhood drowning
Article 3 of our articles of association sets our disinterested purpose as drastically improving swimming ability and water safety, and promoting generally an active, sporting and healthy lifestyle among children and young people.
Research by Ghent University shows that Belgian primary school children receive, on average, only 50 to 60 hours of swimming instruction across six years of schooling. Swimming ability is declining and the risk of silent drowning is rising. Instruction outside school has largely moved to the private market, which puts it out of reach of the families most at risk.
Our founders are teachers, one of them a qualified teacher of Physical Education, who set up the association to address that gap directly.
Statutory activities
What we do
- organising and providing swimming lessons for children, young people and adults;
- providing water safety and lifesaving swimming training;
- organising and supervising sports, play, themed and holiday camps for young people, during and outside school holidays, with or without overnight stay;
- organising sporting events, training courses, and after-school activities and childcare;
- cooperating with schools, sports clubs and public authorities to promote youth sport and swimming instruction;
- all other activities that contribute directly or indirectly to the corporate purpose.
Our beneficiaries are children and young people in Antwerp and the surrounding municipalities, including families for whom commercial swimming lessons are financially out of reach, and adults who never learned to swim as children. Participation is open to all, without distinction as to origin, belief, gender or means.
Cause classification
How our work is best categorised
In order of relevance to our mission:
- Public health and safety — drowning prevention and water safety. This is our core purpose.
- Children and youth — youth development and child welfare. Our beneficiaries are children and young people, including those whose families cannot otherwise afford swimming lessons.
- Community development and social inclusion. We work with schools, local sports clubs and public authorities in the Antwerp region, and our activities are open to all children.
- Sport and physical activity — grassroots participation. Secondary and instrumental: sport is the method by which we deliver the above, not an end in itself.
Important clarification
What ActiveLife VZW is not
We provide instruction, but we are not an educational institution. The distinction matters enough to state it explicitly:
- Not a school. ActiveLife VZW is not a school, college or university. We are not part of the Flemish education system, we have no pupils on roll, no curriculum and no organising authority.
- No qualifications awarded. We do not issue academic or state-recognised qualifications.
- No education funding. We receive no operating funds or subsidies from the education budget.
- Not a commercial sports business. We operate on a strictly not-for-profit basis.
- Not a competitive sports club. We do not run competitive swimming, elite sport or professional sport.
- No political or religious affiliation. ActiveLife VZW is politically and religiously independent.
A nonprofit programme, rather than an education programme, is therefore the correct route for us.
Governance
Our non-profit and public benefit character
Unremunerated directors
Under Article 21, directors receive no remuneration for their duties as directors. They may only be reimbursed for actual expenses, as determined by the General Meeting.
Asset lock on dissolution
Under Article 25, on dissolution any net assets must be transferred to one or more associations with a similar disinterested purpose, designated by the General Meeting or, failing that, by the Antwerp court.
Public benefit
Our activities are directed at children and young people in the general community, not at a closed membership. Membership contributions are capped at EUR 1,000 per year under Article 9.
Accountability
The General Meeting approves the annual accounts and the budget and appoints the directors. Annual accounts are filed as Belgian law prescribes. Our first financial year closes on 31 December 2026.
Tax status
Registered for VAT under the small enterprises exemption scheme (Article 56bis of the Belgian VAT Code), confirmed by the Federal Public Service Finance on 19 May 2026.
Verification
Documents available on request
Articles of association (signed Dutch original and English translation); proof of filing of the deed of incorporation; extract from the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises; confirmation of registration in the UBO register; confirmation of VAT status from the Federal Public Service Finance; and our mission, activities and impact statement.
Belgium does not issue an equivalent of the US IRS determination letter. A Belgian VZW derives its non-profit character from its legal form and articles of association under the WVV, evidenced by the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises extract.