International Lifeline Fund

What International Lifeline Fund does

International Lifeline Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, founded in 2003 and headquartered in Washington DC, that delivers clean water and clean energy solutions to underserved communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, with current operations concentrated in Uganda (Apac District and Karamoja region). Its core offerings include construction of piped water systems and boreholes, the EverFlow quasi-utility water service that delivers continuous year-round flow, fuel-efficient cookstoves (including institutional models for schools), drip irrigation equipment for smallholder farmers, and The Dan Can—a proprietary cleanable jerry can with a bottom circular opening designed to prevent post-collection water recontamination. The organization employs 51-100 staff and reports active operations through mid-2025.

The business model is donation-driven: Lifeline Fund receives contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporate partners through tiered giving ($10/$25/$50/$100/$200) on a one-time or monthly recurring basis, with a 3% fee-coverage option for donors. The only commercial revenue stream is unit sales of The Dan Can at $2.75-$4.00, priced competitively against traditional jerry cans at $2.50-$3.50. Distribution occurs through direct community service delivery (field-built infrastructure, last-mile cookstove and Dan Can distribution) and through institutional partnerships, most notably a WFP-sponsored project installing fuel-saving stoves in 63 primary and secondary schools in Uganda's Karamoja region. Customer segments span rural water-insecure households, wood-fuel-dependent families, smallholder farmers, and refugee populations.

Lifeline Fund's strategic positioning combines humanitarian mission with private-market mechanisms, leveraging operational field presence in remote geographies and proprietary product design (notably The Dan Can) as primary differentiators. The organization has no disclosed revenue figures, no funding rounds, and no M&A activity; its governance is led by Founder/President/Executive Director Dan Wolf, Director of Finance Heidi Myers, and Deputy Director Vahid Jahangiri. Its stated addressable problem is large—800 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa drinking contaminated water, 90% of Africans cooking with wood-fuel over open fires, and an estimated $78 billion in annual GDP lost to water contamination—but its current footprint is sub-scale relative to that opportunity.

Name

International Lifeline Fund

Legal name

International Lifeline Fund

Website

https://lifelinefund.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

International Lifeline Fund is a US-based nonprofit, founded in 2003, that delivers clean water infrastructure, fuel-efficient cookstoves, and proprietary products like The Dan Can to underserved communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, with operations concentrated in Uganda and funding sourced from donations and institutional grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian Water and Energy Services

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)

akta.pro primary industry

Climate Resilience & Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) (BPAGABAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Drinking Water Distribution Network Operations (Mains, Valves, Hydrants, Service Lines) (EUANAAAE), Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM), Climate Finance, Carbon Markets & MRV Systems (BPADALAB)

Keywords

• Clean water infrastructure
• Clean energy solutions
• Cookstove distribution
• Water utility services
• Humanitarian development

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: The organization operates as a nonprofit funded primarily through donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate partners. Donation tiers include $10, $25, $50, $100, and $200 options, with both one-time and monthly recurring donation options.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

International Lifeline Fund is a nonprofit organization that constructs water infrastructure (piped systems and boreholes) and operates the EverFlow quasi-utility service to deliver continuous clean water to communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. It also produces and distributes fuel-efficient cookstoves and the Dan Can, a cleanable jerry can product, to address water contamination and reliance on wood-fuel. Additionally, it supports smallholder farmers through drip irrigation programs that build climate resilience.

Product overview

International Lifeline Fund operates as a nonprofit organization offering clean water and energy solutions across Sub-Saharan Africa through multiple integrated programs. The core offerings include the Better Water initiative (encompassing water infrastructure construction, the EverFlow quasi-utility service, and drip irrigation support for smallholder farmers) and the Better Energy initiative (focused on fuel-efficient cook-stoves). The organization also developed The Dan Can, an innovative consumer product—a cleanable jerry can priced at $2.75-$4.00 designed to prevent water recontamination. Infrastructure projects include piped water systems and institutional stoves installed in schools. These programs work together to address Africa's water and energy crises through private market mechanisms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• EverFlow: A quasi-utility service operated by the organization that ensures continuous water flow every day of the year.
• The Dan Can

Products and services

• Better Water Program Integrated water access initiative for communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, encompassing construction of water infrastructure (piped systems and boreholes), the EverFlow quasi-utility service for year-round continuous water delivery, and drip irrigation equipment for smallholder farmers to boost incomes and build climate resilience.
• Better Energy Program Production and sale of highly efficient cookstoves that reduce reliance on wood-fuels, addressing Africa's energy crisis and improving health and environmental outcomes for households and institutions.
• The Dan Can A novel, cleanable jerry can priced at $2.75-$4.00, featuring a circular opening at the bottom wide enough to put a hand through, a rugged water-tight screw cap, and a bottom carve-out. Designed to minimize recontamination risk for households collecting and storing water across Sub-Saharan Africa.
• EverFlow Quasi-Utility Service A quasi-utility service that ensures continuous water flow every day of the year to communities served by Lifeline's water infrastructure.
• Piped Water Systems Construction Construction of piped water systems providing clean water access to communities. Example deployment: the Teboke piped water system serving approximately 1,100 people in Apac District, Northern Uganda.
• Drip Irrigation Initiative Program helping smallholder farmers in Uganda access irrigation equipment that boosts incomes and builds climate resilience.
• Institutional Stoves for Schools Fuel-saving institutional stoves installed in schools and other institutional settings; deployed at 63 primary and secondary schools in Uganda's Karamoja region under a WFP-sponsored project.

Quantifiable outcome

• Minimizes risk of recontamination for hundreds of millions of people through cleanable jerry can design
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• WFP (World Food Programme)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWFP-sponsored project involving installation of fuel-saving institutional stoves in 63 primary and secondary schools in Uganda's Karamoja region. This represents a significant partnership for delivering energy solutions to educational institutions.
• Partner Organizations (Logos Displayed)minorOthersThe organization displays logos of partners without naming them specifically. These appear to include funding partners, implementation partners, and organizational supporters who enable their water and energy programs across Africa.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• WaterAid: Global nonprofit focused exclusively on clean water, sanitation, and hygiene in low-income countries. Directly comparable to Lifeline's water access mission and community-based delivery model, though operating at much larger scale across more geographies.
• charity: water: Nonprofit funding and building clean water projects in developing countries with strong digital donor-engagement model. Comparable target beneficiaries, donor-driven revenue model, and water-infrastructure delivery, though geographically broader and brand-led.
• Water.org: Pioneers of market-based WaterCredit / microfinance approaches to household water access. Closely comparable to Lifeline's 'power of private markets' philosophy and household-level financing-and-distribution model, though operating globally and at far larger scale.
• Splash: Nonprofit focused on clean water access for children in schools and communities in Asia and Africa. Highly comparable institutional and household water delivery focus, with overlapping school-based engagement similar to Lifeline's Karamoja schools work.
• Evidence Action: Nonprofit scaling evidence-based health and development interventions including safe water and clean cooking. Comparable WASH-and-cooking portfolio and rigorous impact-evaluation orientation, though operating at significantly larger scale across multiple African and Asian countries.

Emerging players

• BURN Manufacturing: East Africa-based designer and manufacturer of efficient cookstoves and solar products. Comparable to Lifeline's Better Energy stove distribution, with a more commercial / manufactured-product orientation versus Lifeline's institutional and household distribution model.
• Solar Cookers International: Nonprofit promoting solar and clean cooking technologies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Overlaps with Lifeline's clean-cooking mission, particularly the household-cooking segment, but focuses on solar thermal rather than fuel-efficient biomass stoves.

Broad incumbents

• Concern Worldwide: Large international humanitarian NGO with active programs in livelihoods, water, and emergency response across multiple African countries. Comparable NGO structure, donor base, and program portfolio, though operating at much larger scale across emergencies and longer-term development.
• Mercy Corps: Major global humanitarian and development NGO with extensive Sub-Saharan Africa presence in water, food security, and livelihoods. Comparable international development orientation and partnership-based delivery, though vastly larger budget and geographic breadth.
• P&G Children's Safe Drinking Water Program: Corporate social-impact program distributing point-of-use water purification technology in developing countries. Comparable WASH focus and distribution-driven model, though embedded as a CSR initiative of a multinational rather than an independent nonprofit.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Intl_Lifeline
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/2595768

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about International Lifeline Fund