What Digital Citizen Fund does

Digital Citizen Fund (DCF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2012/2013 by Roya Mahboob, Afghanistan's first female tech CEO, headquartered at the Brooklyn Navy Yard's New Lab with operational offices in Herat, Afghanistan. The organization delivers digital literacy, financial literacy, and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, math) education programs to women and girls in Afghanistan, and supports emergency humanitarian relief, scholarships, and entrepreneurship incubation including micro-loans.

DCF's service portfolio is organized around six interlocking programs: IT Centers (established 2013, providing technology access and training); the Afghan Girls Robotics Team / Afghan Dreamers (launched January 2017 as a STEM program of 7 students, grown into a globally awarded robotics competition team); the DCF Scholarship Fund (established August 2021 in partnership with Qatar Foundation to relocate and educate Afghan students abroad); the BRITE Initiative (launched March 2022 at Doha Forum to advocate for STEAM education via exhibitions); the Entrepreneur Support Program (financial literacy and micro-loans enabled by Neuberger Berman Foundation); and an Emergency Assistance Program (evacuation, visa, and relief services). A STEAM high school project (Dreamer Institute, designed with Yale University) is currently suspended due to Taliban restrictions on girls' education.

DCF is funded through donations and grants from institutional partners including Qatar Foundation, Qatar Fund for Development, Qatar Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Qatar Development Fund, and Neuberger Berman Foundation. All programs are delivered free of charge to beneficiaries; donations are accepted through PayPal. The organization employs 11-50 staff and has been profiled extensively in global media (BBC, Forbes, NBC, PBS, NPR, Reuters, Washington Post, NYT, Al Jazeera) since 2017. Revenue and detailed grant amounts are not publicly disclosed.

Name

Digital Citizen Fund

Legal name

Digital Citizen Fund

Website

https://digitalcitizenfund.format.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Digital Citizen Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2013 by Roya Mahboob that delivers digital literacy, financial literacy, and STEAM education programs to women and girls in Afghanistan, including the Afghan Dreamers robotics team, scholarship fund, and IT centers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Education and Empowerment Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Civic and Social Organizations (8134), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Inclusion & Civic Tech (Connectivity, GovTech for Social Good) (BPAGALAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Digital Development & ICT4D / GovTech Technical Assistance (BPADAEAL), Digital Inclusion & Public Tech Access Training (Device/Internet/Basic IT) (EDAAAFAE), Digital Skills & Tech Upskilling (Noncredit) (EDAAAEAE), Foundational Computer & Device Literacy (EDAAAIAA)

Keywords

• STEAM education programs
• Robotics training
• Financial literacy training
• Girls education advocacy
• Humanitarian assistance services

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: DCF operates as a non-profit organization funded through donations and grants to support educational programs, emergency assistance, scholarships, and IT center operations for women and girls in Afghanistan.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Digital Citizen Fund is a nonprofit organization that delivers educational, technological, and humanitarian programs to women and girls in Afghanistan. Its offerings include STEAM and robotics education (Afghan Girls Robotics Team), digital and financial literacy training at IT centers, entrepreneurship support through micro-loans and grants, scholarships for Afghan students to study abroad, and emergency evacuation and humanitarian relief services.

Product overview

Digital Citizen Fund is a non-profit organization (not a unified technology product) that operates multiple educational and empowerment programs for women and girls in Afghanistan. The core organization runs several interconnected programs including the Afghan Girls Robotics Team (a STEM/robotics competition program), the BRITE Initiative (advocacy through exhibitions and conferences), the DCF Scholarship Fund (supporting education abroad), IT Centers (providing technology access), an Entrepreneur Support Program (micro-loans and financial literacy), and STEAM School (a planned technology high school). These programs collectively aim to build women's technological and financial literacy, with the robotics team being the most internationally recognized initiative.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BRITE Initiative: BRITE (Building Resilience through Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship) Initiative aims to bring together governments, business leaders, civil society organizations, under 25s and their communities in building a bright human future in Afghanistan and the region, focusing on educational opportunities for women and girls in STEAM fields.
• Afghan Girls Robotics Team
• Dreamer Institute (STEAM School)
• Zalla

Products and services

• Afghan Girls Robotics Team (Afghan Dreamers) DCF's flagship STEM program — a competitive robotics team of Afghan girls that has won multiple international competitions and developed real-world engineering solutions such as low-cost ventilators and UV disinfection robots.
• BRITE Initiative Initiative bringing together governments, business leaders, civil society, and communities under 25 to advance educational opportunities for women and girls in STEAM fields through exhibitions, conferences, and media showcases.
• DCF Scholarship Fund Scholarship program supporting Afghan students' continuing education abroad, established in partnership with Qatar Foundation and Qatar Fund for Development.
• IT Centers Technology access centers established since 2013 where women and children gain access to technology, receive technological training, and connect virtually with others globally.
• Entrepreneur Support Program Financial literacy curriculum paired with a micro-loan and grant program that helps young women start and run small businesses across sectors including agriculture, food, fashion, handcraft, and robotics/games.
• Emergency Assistance Program Humanitarian program providing evacuation assistance, earthquake relief, and emergency support to families across Afghanistan and in transit countries, including accommodation, visa support, and food assistance.
• Dreamer Institute (STEAM School) Planned high school of science, technology, engineering, arts and math designed with Yale University to educate the next generation of Afghan tech leaders; currently suspended due to Taliban restrictions on girls' education.
• Conferences and Exhibitions Technology and entrepreneurship conferences and exhibitions organized and participated in by DCF, including the TIE and TIAE conferences in Herat and showcases at Doha Forum, LDC5, FIRST Global, and Robotex.
• Gallery of Dreamers Gallery showcasing the work and achievements of Afghan girls and women in technology and STEAM fields.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Qatar GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2022Expedited visas for Afghan Dreamers and their teachers to travel to Doha during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.
• Qatar Ministry of Foreign AffairsmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2022Partnered with DCF to launch the BRITE exhibition at the Doha Forum, featuring works of the Afghan Girls Robotics team.
• Qatar FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Provided scholarships enabling Afghan Girls Robotics Team members to relocate to Doha and continue education at institutions within Education City. Also granted further scholarships for university studies in the US and Canada.
• Yale UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science students helped design tech school in Afghanistan. Yale architecture students contributed to design of the Dreamer Institute STEAM school.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Girls Who Code: US-based nonprofit working to close the gender gap in technology through coding clubs, summer programs, and college-loops for girls. Shares DCF's core thesis that girls need structured pathways into computing and STEAM, and similar reliance on corporate and foundation funding.
• Black Girls CODE: Nonprofit providing technology education for girls of color, focused on underrepresented groups entering computing and STEM fields. Comparable to DCF's mission of equipping marginalized girls with technical skills and visibility in STEAM.
• FIRST Global: Organizer of the FIRST Global Challenge, the international robotics competition in which the Afghan Girls Robotics Team has repeatedly competed and won awards. Closely linked operational peer given shared robotics competition ecosystem.
• Malala Fund: Founded by Malala Yousafzai, the Malala Fund advocates for 12 years of free, safe, quality education for girls, with a strong focus on Afghanistan and other regions where girls' education is restricted. Highly comparable mission, advocacy orientation, and global fundraising profile to DCF.
• Room to Read: Global nonprofit focused on literacy and girls' education in low-income countries, combining direct program delivery with advocacy and partnerships. Comparable to DCF's mix of direct educational programming and donor-driven scale-building in developing-country contexts.

Regional players

• Aga Khan Foundation: Foundation operating a broad portfolio of education, health, and rural development programs across Afghanistan and the wider region, including girls' education. Comparable regional focus and donor model to DCF, though at much larger scale and longer history in-country.
• Afghan Institute of Learning: Grassroots Afghan nonprofit founded by Sakena Yacoobi providing education, health, and training programs especially for women and children inside Afghanistan. Direct thematic overlap with DCF on Afghan women's education, with similar in-country operational constraints.

Broad incumbents

• Code.org: Large US nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science, with global advocacy and K-12 curriculum reach. Operates at significantly larger scale but pursues the same digital-literacy-for-all mission as DCF's IT center and digital literacy programs.
• International Rescue Committee (IRC): Major humanitarian organization responding to the world's worst humanitarian crises, including active programming for women and girls in Afghanistan. Comparable to DCF on emergency assistance and refugee education, but at vastly greater scale and broader mandate.
• Mercy Corps: Large global humanitarian and development organization with active programming in Afghanistan focused on food security, livelihoods, and emergency response. Comparable to DCF on the humanitarian/emergency assistance dimension but with significantly larger budget and broader mandate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/digital-citizen-fund

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Digital Citizen Fund