What Higherlife Foundation does

Higherlife Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation established in 1996 by Tsitsi and Strive Masiyiwa and headquartered in Harare, Zimbabwe, with a regional office in Lesotho. The foundation delivers programs across five integrated verticals: education, global health, sustainable livelihoods, disaster relief, and legacy (cultural heritage). Operations span at least seven African countries, including Zimbabwe, Lesotho, South Africa, Rwanda, Kenya, Nigeria, and Burundi.

The foundation's reported cumulative impact includes over 400,000 scholarships awarded, 40 million neglected tropical disease (NTD) treatments delivered, and 2.4 million livelihoods interventions. Programs are provided free of charge to beneficiaries, with funding derived from philanthropic donations, grants, and endowment returns rather than commercial revenue. The foundation employs 251-500 staff and is currently led by President & CEO Elizabeth Tanya Masiyiwa, reflecting a recent generational leadership transition within the founder family.

In 2026 the foundation extended its public presence through the launch of the book "And Still We Rise" and a public lecture at Wits Business School on African-led philanthropy, signaling an explicit shift toward thought leadership and narrative influence alongside direct program delivery. No AI/ML capabilities, proprietary technology platforms, or commercial product lines are associated with the foundation in the available material.

Name

Higherlife Foundation

Legal name

Higherlife Foundation

Website

https://higherlifefoundation.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Higherlife Foundation is a non-profit established in 1996 by Tsitsi and Strive Masiyiwa, operating across at least seven African countries to deliver education, healthcare, sustainable livelihoods, disaster relief, and legacy programs to vulnerable children, mothers, and rural communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Foundation Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH), Foundation/NGO & Philanthropic Scholarships (EDAIAOAH), International & Local Implementing NGOs (HLAJAKAD)

Keywords

• Education scholarships
• Global health programs
• Sustainable livelihoods
• Disaster relief
• Philanthropic foundation

Headquarters

HQ city

Harare

HQ country

Zimbabwe

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Funding / Foundation Model: As a private foundation, Higherlife Foundation generates revenue through philanthropic donations, grants, and endowment returns. The foundation was founded with initial capital and continues to raise funds from donors to support its mission of empowering Africa's next generation through education, health, and thriving communities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Higherlife Foundation is a philanthropic foundation that operates five core programmes: Education, Global Health, Sustainable Livelihoods, Disaster Relief & Preparedness, and Legacy. The foundation delivers free scholarships, healthcare services, skills training, and disaster response support to vulnerable populations across multiple African countries, with headquarters in Harare, Zimbabwe, and operational offices in Lesotho.

Product overview

Higherlife Foundation is a private charitable foundation offering five interconnected social impact programmes: Education, Global Health, Sustainable Livelihoods, Disaster Relief & Preparedness, and Legacy. The programmes work together to uplift Africa's most vulnerable populations through targeted scholarships, healthcare solutions, climate-smart farming initiatives, disaster preparedness systems, and cultural heritage preservation. The foundation operates across multiple African countries with offices in Zimbabwe (head office) and Lesotho.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Education Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• 400,000 scholarships awarded to vulnerable and academically gifted children
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Tony Elumelu Foundation: Africa-based private philanthropic foundation funded by a prominent business figure, running multi-country programs across entrepreneurship, education, and health — directly comparable to Higherlife in scope, founder-driven origin, and pan-African footprint.
• Dangote Foundation: Large African private foundation established by a major industrialist, focusing on health, education, and economic empowerment across multiple African countries — structurally similar to Higherlife in scale, founder backing, and vertical breadth.
• Mo Ibrahim Foundation: Pan-African private foundation focused on governance and development, founded by a mobile telecoms entrepreneur — comparable in founder-driven model, pan-African orientation, and emphasis on catalytic impact.
• Nelson Mandela Foundation: South Africa-based legacy foundation with comparable programmatic breadth (education, health, dialogue) and iconic founder brand — comparable as a sub-Saharan African foundation of similar institutional scale.
• Acumen: Global impact investor and philanthropic organization with significant East and Southern Africa operations focused on livelihoods and poverty alleviation — directly comparable in mission and beneficiary segments to Higherlife's Sustainable Livelihoods work.

Broad incumbents

• Mastercard Foundation: Large-scale foundation with a heavy Africa focus on education and youth livelihoods — overlaps directly with Higherlife's Education and Sustainable Livelihoods programs and represents the dominant institutional benchmark in this space.
• Clinton Health Access Initiative: Large global-health implementation organization active across sub-Saharan Africa in NTD treatment, maternal health, and cholera response — directly comparable to Higherlife's Global Health programmatic outputs (40M NTD treatments, cholera vaccination campaigns).
• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: Largest philanthropic foundation globally with major Africa health, education, and agricultural development portfolios — represents the scale benchmark and a potential institutional funding counterpart for Higherlife's programs.

Emerging players

• Co-Impact: Global philanthropic collaborative funding catalytic, locally-led development initiatives — a thematic peer in the 'catalytic African-led philanthropy' space Higherlife is positioning itself within.

Others

• Africa Philanthropy Forum: Pan-African peer network and convening body for African philanthropic organizations and donors — comparable as an ecosystem participant in the same African philanthropy space where Higherlife operates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HigherLifeFDN
• Facebookfacebook.com/HigherlifeFDN
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/higher-life/?originalSubdomain=zw
• Instagraminstagram.com/higherlifefndtn/?hl=en

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 Higherlife Foundation