Coptic Orphans

What Coptic Orphans does

Coptic Orphans (legally Coptic Orphans Support Association, registered in Virginia, USA) is a non-profit organization founded in 1988 that delivers education, healthcare, and character-development programs to fatherless children in Egypt. Its flagship Not Alone Program is delivered through a network of 1,031 church-based volunteer mentors (including 550 specially trained Reps) operating across 900 villages in partnership with 69 Egyptian Dioceses and 218 Community Development Associations. The organization supplements the Not Alone Program with the Valuable Girl Project (Big-Little Sister mentoring, 1,500 university-aged women served), The 21 (support for children of the 2015 Libya Coptic martyrs), Serve to Learn (international volunteer teaching trips), Scholarships in Egypt, and economic-empowerment initiatives including B'edaya microfinance (zero-interest loans to widowed mothers) and Baseeta financial inclusion.

The organization's underlying technology is primarily a distributed human-service delivery model rather than a software platform; the only technology stack explicitly mentioned consists of Ministry of Education digital learning platforms and online education systems used during the COVID-19 transition, supplemented by donor-facing integrations with Amazon Smile, GoodSearch, and GoodShop. Coptic Orphans does not appear to operate proprietary software beyond its website (copticorphans.org) and donor portal (donors.copticorphans.org).

The business model is a charitable donation model rather than a commercial revenue model. Funding comes from child sponsorships at $100/month, one-time and recurring donations, occasion-giving and legacy gifts, passive contributions via Amazon Smile (0.5% of purchases) and GoodSearch/GoodShop, and grants. The organization states that 84% of every dollar is spent directly on programs (with 6% on management/administration and 10% on fundraising) and that donations are tax-deductible in the US, Canada, Australia, Egypt, and the UK. It operates regional offices in Fairfax (US, headquarters), Cairo (Egypt, opened 2007), Montreal (Canada), Sydney (Australia), and London (UK), targeting both Coptic diaspora donors in Western markets and Egyptian communities domestically.

Name

Coptic Orphans

Legal name

Coptic Orphans Support Association

Website

https://copticorphans.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Coptic Orphans is a US-registered non-profit founded in 1988 that delivers education, healthcare, and mentorship programs to fatherless children in Egypt through 1,031 church-based volunteer mentors across 900 villages, funded primarily by individual child sponsorships and diaspora donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Child Welfare and Education Sponsorship

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Child Welfare, Foster Care & Adoption Services (BPAGAEAE)

Keywords

• Nonprofit child sponsorship
• Orphan education programs
• Community development partnerships
• Microfinance for mothers
• Volunteer mentorship programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Merrifield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Child Sponsorship: Individual donors sponsor a child for ongoing monthly support, providing quality education, healthcare, and character development for fatherless children in Egypt.
2. Direct Donations: One-time or recurring donations to support programs, with 84% of every dollar going directly to programs serving children. Donations are tax-deductible in the US, Canada, Australia, Egypt, and UK.
3. B'edaya Microfinance Initiative: Zero-interest microloans (0% for 26 months) provided to widowed mothers of enrolled children to start income-generating projects. The initiative has distributed LE243,500 (US$27,400) across three rounds.
4. Occasion Giving and Legacy Gifts: Donors can dedicate donations to mark special occasions (weddings, baptisms, memorials) or leave legacy gifts to support children long-term.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Coptic Orphans is a US-registered nonprofit (Coptic Orphans Support Association) that delivers a portfolio of educational, mentorship, and material support programs to fatherless children in Egypt. Its core service is the Not Alone Program, providing quality education, healthcare access, and character development through a network of 1,031+ church-based volunteer representatives operating across 900 Egyptian villages. The organization funds this work through individual child sponsorships, recurring donations, and targeted microfinance initiatives for widowed mothers.

Product overview

Coptic Orphans operates a multi-program charitable portfolio focused on transforming the lives of fatherless children in Egypt through education. The core offering consists of the Not Alone Program, which provides comprehensive support including quality education, healthcare, and character development through church-based volunteer mentors. Supporting programs include the Valuable Girl Project (girls' empowerment through mentoring), The 21 (supporting martyr families), Serve to Learn (volunteer teaching trips), and Scholarships in Egypt (higher education access). Auxiliary initiatives include the B'edaya microfinance program for widowed mothers, Baseeta financial inclusion, Urgent Needs emergency assistance, and Digital Learning Support for COVID-era transitions. The organization has been improving children's lives since 1988, operating in 900 villages across Egypt with partnerships with 69 dioceses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Not Alone Program: Education-focused program providing support to fatherless children in Egypt
• The Valuable Girl Project
• The 21
• Serve to Learn
• B'edaya
• Baseeta

Products and services

• Not Alone Program Flagship program providing fatherless children in Egypt with access to quality education, healthcare, and character development support through church-based volunteer mentors who visit children in their own homes.
• The Valuable Girl Project Girls' empowerment initiative using one-on-one Big Sister/Little Sister mentoring relationships to help girls complete education, raise self-esteem, and develop leadership skills, delivered through Community Development Associations across Egyptian governorates.
• The 21 Program supporting the children and families of the 21 Coptic martyrs killed in Libya, providing enrollment in the Not Alone Program with extended mentorship, psychological counseling, and life-skills workshops.
• Serve to Learn International volunteer program sending participants to Egypt for 3-week service trips to teach English, health education, and female empowerment to children participating in Coptic Orphans' programs.
• B'edaya Microfinance Initiative Microfinance program providing zero-interest loans (0% for 26 months) to widowed mothers of enrolled children to start income-generating projects, paired with entrepreneurial coaching and business development support.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100,000 children's lives transformed since 1988
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Egypt's Ministry of Planning and DevelopmentflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 July 2021Meeting between Dr. Hala El-Said, Egypt's Minister of Planning and Development, and Nermien Riad, Founder and Executive Director of Coptic Orphans, on July 13, 2021 to discuss cooperation between the ministry's 'Decent Life' initiative and Coptic Orphans programs.
• 69 Dioceses in EgyptcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeep partnership with 69 Egyptian Dioceses who include Coptic Orphans programs in their services. Volunteer Reps operate through local churches to provide mentorship and support to children and families.
• 218 Community Development Associations (CDAs)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with 218 Community Development Associations across Egypt to accelerate community impact and deliver programs at grassroots level.
• Egyptian Ministry of EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Ministry of Education on digital learning transition during COVID-19 era. Coptic Orphans works with the ministry's online platforms, cashless payment systems, and e-learning initiatives.
• Community Development Associations in QenacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with 7 local CDAs in Qena governorate for Valuable Girl Project implementation, including government officials, religious leaders, and NGO representatives at the contract signing event on October 18, 2017.
• Baladi CDAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Baladi Community Development Association for Valuable Girl Project implementation, including projects that heal skin disease through emotional support programs.
• Luxor GovernorateflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Luxor Governorate on community transformation projects. The Governor attended the grand opening ceremony of the Salah Salem tunnel renovation project led by Valuable Girl Project participants, alongside Coptic Orphans Founder and Executive Director.
• Civil Council Chairman (Luxor)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal government partnership where the Civil Council Chairman supported the young women's tunnel renovation project after being initially skeptical of their capabilities.
• Religious Freedom InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExecutive Director Nermien Riad participated in an interview with Jeremy Barker of the Religious Freedom Institute discussing COVID-19's impact in Egypt and Coptic Orphans' response.
• UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoptic Orphans was one of four civil society representatives selected to give a statement at the UN General Assembly high-level meeting on minority rights, advocating for diaspora role in economic development and poverty alleviation.
• 42 Widowed Mothers (B'edaya recipients)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMicrofinance initiative providing zero-interest loans to widowed mothers for income-generating projects. Recipients operate businesses including livestock feed sales, grocery stores, photo studios, and more.
• Day Pitney LLPminorOthersNational law firm; Mark Morgan, Partner at Day Pitney LLP, appointed to Board of Directors in March 2021.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• World Vision: Major Christian child sponsorship and community development NGO operating child-focused programs across dozens of developing countries. Comparable in faith-based positioning, sponsorship revenue model, and integration with local church/community structures.
• ChildFund International: Child sponsorship-focused international NGO serving children in developing countries, with similar sponsorship-tiered donations and community-based program delivery through local partners.
• Compassion International: The largest faith-based child sponsorship organization globally, operating an essentially identical model of monthly donor sponsorship supporting children's education, healthcare, and character development in developing countries. Most direct functional peer.
• Holt International Children's Services: Faith-rooted child welfare organization focused on adoption, foster care, and family-strengthening services for vulnerable children internationally. Comparable in child-welfare focus and faith-based orientation.
• SOS Children's Villages: Global NGO dedicated specifically to orphaned and abandoned children, operating family-based care programs and youth support. Most direct thematic peer given Coptic Orphans' focus on fatherless children.

Emerging players

• Islamic Relief USA: Faith-rooted international humanitarian organization with orphan sponsorship and education programs in the Middle East. Comparable in faith-based sponsorship model but serves a different beneficiary demographic.

Broad incumbents

• Catholic Relief Services: Large Catholic international relief and development agency with broad programming including child welfare and education in Egypt. Overlaps in mission and faith-based funding but operates at materially larger scale and scope.
• Habitat for Humanity International: Large faith-based international NGO with comparable funding model (recurring donors, multi-country affiliate structure, 4-star Charity Navigator profile), but with mission focus on housing rather than child welfare.
• Save the Children: One of the largest global children's rights and welfare NGOs. Operates in Egypt on child education and protection; comparable beneficiary population but vastly larger, secular, and broader in scope.
• UNICEF USA: UN children's fund operating the largest global child welfare programs. Operates extensively in Egypt on child education and protection; comparable beneficiary focus but orders of magnitude larger and institutionally funded.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/copticorphans
• Facebookfacebook.com/copticorphans

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 Coptic Orphans