Jan Willem de Pous (23 January 1920 – 6 January 1996) was a Dutch politician of the defunct

Christian Historical Union The Christian Historical Union (, CHU) was a Protestant Christian democratic political party in the Netherlands. The CHU is one of the predecessors of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), into which it merged in September 1980. History 187 ...

(CHU) party now merged into the

Christian Democratic Appeal The Christian Democratic Appeal ( , CDA) is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in the Netherlands. Formed as a federation in 1975 by the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary Party, and the Christian Historical ...

(CDA) party and economist.

Biography

De Pous attended the

Amsterdams Lyceum The Amsterdams Lyceum is a Dutch secondary school combining ''gymnasium (school), gymnasium'' and ''Education in the Netherlands#Vwo, atheneum''. Both school types prepare students to go to university. It was established in 1917. The Amsterdams Ly ...

from June 1935 until June 1938 and applied at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, ) is a public university, public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Established in 1632 by municipal authorities, it is the fourth-oldest academic institution in the Netherlan ...

in June 1939 majoring in

Economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

and obtaining a

Bachelor of Economics A Bachelor of Economics (BEc or BEcon)Bureau of Labor StatisticsHow to Become an Economist/ref> is an academic degree, awarded to students who have completed specialised undergraduate studies in economics. Variants include the "Bachelor of Econo ...

degree before leaving the University during the

German occupation German-occupied Europe, or Nazi-occupied Europe, refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly militarily occupied and civil-occupied, including puppet states, by the (armed forces) and the government of Nazi Germany at ...

in April 1942 and joined the

Dutch resistance The Dutch resistance () to the History of the Netherlands (1939–1945), German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II can be mainly characterized as non-violent. The primary organizers were the Communist Party of the Netherlands, C ...

against the German occupiers and worked as a journalist for the

underground newspaper The terms underground press or clandestine press refer to periodicals and publications that are produced without official approval, illegally or against the wishes of a dominant (governmental, religious, or institutional) group. In specific rece ...

Trouw ''Trouw'' (; ) is a Dutch daily newspaper appearing in compact size. It was founded in 1943 as an orthodox Protestant underground newspaper during World War II. Since 2009, it has been owned by DPG Media (known as De Persgroep until 2019). '' ...

'' from April 1942 until January 1946. Following the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

De Pous returned to the

in July 1945 and also worked as a researcher before graduating with a

Master of Economics The Master of Economics (MEcon or MEc) is a postgraduate master's degree in economics comprising training in economic theory, econometrics, and/or applied economics. The degree is also offered as an MS or MSc, MA or MCom in economics; var ...

degree in July 1947. De Pous applied at the

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...

in July 1947 for a

postgraduate education Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have ...

and obtained a

Master of Financial Economics A Master of Financial Economics is a postgraduate master's degree American Economic Association (N.D.)Graduate degrees in economics/ref> focusing on theoretical finance. Cecilia Seiter (2023)''Earning A Master’s In Economics: What To Know'' ...

degree in November 1949. De Pous worked as a trade association executive for the Christian Employers' association (NCW) served as General-Secretary from 1 November 1949 until 1 January 1953 and as an associate professor of

Public economics Public economics ''(or economics of the public sector)'' is the study of government policy through the lens of economic efficiency and Equity (economics), equity. Public economics builds on the theory of welfare economics and is ultimately used as ...

at the University of Amsterdam from 1 January 1953 until 1 December 1958. On 8 October 1958 De Pous was nominated as Member of the Council of State, taking office on 1 December 1958. After the election of 1959 De Pous was appointed as Minister of Economic Affairs in the Cabinet De Quay, taking office on 19 May 1959. In February 1963 De Pous announced that he would not stand for the election of 1963. Following the cabinet formation of 1963 De Pous was not giving a cabinet post in the new cabinet, the Cabinet De Quay was replaced by the Cabinet Marijnen on 24 July 1963. De Pous remained in active politics, in April 1964 De Pous was nominated as Chairman of the Social and Economic Council (SER), serving from 1 May 1964 until 1 February 1985. De Pous also became active in the

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The private sector employs most of the workfo ...

and

public sector The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, pu ...

and occupied numerous seats as a corporate director and nonprofit director on several boards of directors and supervisory boards (

Overloon War Museum The Overloon War Museum (''Dutch: Oorlogsmuseum Overloon'') in full 'Dutch National War and Resistance Museum Overloon', is a Dutch historical and educational museum located in the North Brabant village of Overloon. It focuses on the history o ...

, Institute for Multiparty Democracy, ProDemos and the

International Institute of Social History International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

) and served on several state commissions and councils on behalf of the government (Cals-Donner Commission, Mijnraad, Raad voor Cultuur and

Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP ("National Civil Pension Fund"), frequently referred to as ABP, is the pension fund for government and education employees in the Netherlands. For the quarter ended 31 December 2014, ABP had 2.8 million participants an ...

Decorations

Honours

Honorary degrees

References

External links

;Official *
Dr. J.W. (Jan) de Pous
Parlement & Politiek {{DEFAULTSORT:Pous, Jan de 1920 births 1996 deaths Chairmen of the Social and Economic Council Christian Democratic Appeal politicians Christian Historical Union politicians Dutch corporate directors Dutch expatriates in the United States Dutch financial writers Dutch members of the Dutch Reformed Church Dutch newspaper editors Dutch nonprofit directors Dutch people of World War II Dutch political writers Dutch trade association executives Grand Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Members of the Council of State (Netherlands) Members of the Social and Economic Council Ministers of economic affairs of the Netherlands Northwestern University alumni People from Aalsmeer Politicians from The Hague University of Amsterdam alumni Academic staff of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam 20th-century Dutch businesspeople 20th-century Dutch civil servants 20th-century Dutch economists 20th-century Dutch educators 20th-century Dutch male writers 20th-century Dutch politicians