No Means No Worldwide

What No Means No Worldwide does

No Means No Worldwide (NMNW) is a US-registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2018 and headquartered in McLean, Virginia, that delivers an evidence-based sexual violence prevention program for youth ages 10-20 across 13 countries. The organization's core product is a dual-gender curriculum suite adapted from the Empowerment Self-Defense methodology originally developed as the IMpower system in Kenya in 2009. The Girls Curriculum teaches assertiveness, boundary setting, verbal de-escalation, and physical self-defense techniques (grab releases, strikes) to girls ages 10-19, while the Boys Curriculum delivers positive masculinity and bystander intervention training for boys in the same age band. Programs are not delivered directly to end users; instead, NMNW trains and certifies local community-based Instructors through 80+ implementing partner organizations, including NGOs, government agencies, and civil society groups. Supporting infrastructure includes a Network Referral System that connects program participants disclosing abuse to vetted local medical, legal, and psychosocial aftercare providers, and SIRA (Survivors In Recovery Anonymous), a low-cost 12-step recovery program for geographies lacking aftercare services. NMNW also jointly developed the Technical Program Quality Assessment (TPQA) tool with FHI 360 to evaluate program performance at the partner, instructor, and beneficiary levels.

Revenue is generated through three primary streams: individual donations including The Upstanders monthly giving program, institutional grants from funders such as CDC/PEPFAR, Oak Foundation, Global Innovation Fund, Dioraphte, DH Ross Foundation, Light for the World, Ray and Tye Noorda Foundation, and SAS-P, and partnership fees paid by implementing partner organizations for training, certification, curriculum access, and technical support. Go-to-market is channel-partner driven and event-driven: NMNW recruits and onboards local NGOs and government entities, conducts multi-day Instructor certification events, and increasingly relies on a Scaling Partner Model in which established partners (e.g., ECR Zambia) train and support new implementing partners (e.g., DAPP Zambia) with reduced NMNW direct involvement. End beneficiaries are segmented primarily by gender and age (girls and boys 10-20), with secondary business-to-business customers being local implementing partner organizations and educational institutions that host programming. The organization operates a remote workforce of approximately 13 core staff supplemented by regionally distributed trainers across the US, Africa, and Latin America.

Name

No Means No Worldwide

Legal name

No Means No Worldwide

Website

https://nomeansnoworldwide.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

No Means No Worldwide is a US 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers evidence-based sexual violence prevention curricula for youth ages 10-20 through 80+ local implementing partners across 13 countries, using Empowerment Self-Defense, bystander intervention, and a partner-trained Instructor model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sexual Violence Prevention Services

NAICS

Educational Services (61), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Threat Assessment, Violence Prevention & Behavioral Intervention Support (EDAEACAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Education Partnerships for Equity, Inclusion & Gender (EDADALAF)

Keywords

• Sexual violence prevention
• Empowerment self-defense training
• Gender-based violence prevention
• Youth bystander intervention
• Nonprofit capacity building

Headquarters

HQ city

Mclean

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: The Upstanders monthly donor program and one-time donations from individual supporters committed to ending sexual violence against women and children.
2. Institutional Grants and Funding: Funding from institutional funders including CDC/PEPFAR, Oak Foundation, Global Innovation Fund, Dioraphte, DH Ross Foundation, Light for the World, Ray and Tye Noorda Foundation, and SAS-P.
3. Partnership Fees: Fees from implementing partner organizations for training, certification, curriculum access, and technical support services.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

No Means No Worldwide partners with local organizations worldwide to train community-based Instructors who deliver the evidence-based No Means No sexual violence prevention program to youth ages 10-20. The program consists of two parallel curricula: a Girls Curriculum (Empowerment Self-Defense teaching assertiveness, boundary setting, grab releases, and strikes) and a Boys Curriculum (Positive Masculinity and Bystander Intervention). These are complemented by a Network Referral System that connects students to local aftercare providers, the SIRA survivor recovery program, Instructor training and certification, and ongoing technical support for implementing partners.

Product overview

No Means No Worldwide offers a unified sexual violence prevention program consisting of the No Means No Curricula for youth ages 10-20. The core offering includes two curricula: the Girls Curriculum teaching Empowerment Self-Defense skills (assertiveness, boundary setting, grab releases, strikes) and the Boys Curriculum focused on Positive Masculinity and bystander intervention. These are supported by the Network Referral System connecting students to local aftercare services and SIRA (Survivors In Recovery Anonymous), a 12-step recovery program. All programs are delivered by certified local Instructors trained through NMNW's training program, with ongoing technical support for implementing partners including research, monitoring, evaluation, and program management.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• No Means No Program (Core Curriculum) A comprehensive sexual violence prevention curriculum for youth ages 10-20, teaching girls empowerment self-defense skills and boys positive masculinity and bystander intervention, delivered by trained community-based Instructors through local implementing partner organizations.
• Girls Curriculum (Empowerment Self-Defense) Empowerment self-defense training teaching girls ages 10-19 verbal and physical self-defense skills including assertiveness, boundary setting, grab releases, and strikes to defend against sexual assault.
• Boys Curriculum (Positive Masculinity & Bystander Intervention) Increases boys' gender-equitable attitudes and provides skills to recognize violence, intervene when witnessing violence, ask for consent, and avoid perpetrating sexual assault.
• Instructor Training & Certification Training and certification program for female and male Instructors to deliver curricula effectively, facilitate meaningful discussion, and provide referrals for additional services, available to staff of implementing partner organizations.
• Network Referral System Connects students with vetted local aftercare providers including medical, legal, and psychosocial services when disclosures occur during No Means No classes.
• Survivors In Recovery Anonymous (SIRA) A low-cost, survivor-focused 12-step recovery program delivered in areas where no aftercare resources exist, organized and led by No Means No Instructors.
• Technical Support for Partners Provides implementing partners with research monitoring and evaluation, program management, and network referral design support to ensure quality implementation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 75,000 adolescent girls trained in Ethiopia alone by end of 2021
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 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

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered secondary and core.

• Safe Futures HubsecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Published 'Building Safe Futures: Solutions to End Childhood Sexual Violence' in 2024, a comprehensive evidence review that found school-based self defense interventions to be effective at significantly reducing childhood sexual violence victimization.
• Development Aid From People to People (DAPP) - ZambiasecondaryImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2023New No Means No partner in Zambia being supported by ECR scaling partner model. 18 female Instructors certified (out of 20 candidates) who reported increased awareness of sexual and gender-based violence.
• Youth Impact (Botswana)secondaryImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2023Co-founder Moitshepi Matsheng shared insights on scaling at 2023 Learning Meeting. Youth Impact leverages partnership with Government of Botswana to scale 'Teaching at the Right Level' program.
• Bantwana Zimbabwe, FACT, Grassroot Soccer, HOSPAZ, Mavambo Trust, ZHI, Zim-TECHcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2022Seven partner organizations in Zimbabwe implementing No Means No programming. First in-country Partner Network Meeting held in Harare in November 2022. Partners include Bantwana Zimbabwe, FACT, Grassroot Soccer, HOSPAZ, Mavambo Trust, ZHI, and Zim-TECH.
• Instituto de las Mujeres Regias (IMMR) - Government of Nuevo León, MexicocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Government partnership established in 2021 for implementation in Monterrey, Mexico's third-largest city. The government provides financial and technical resources while local NGOs CreeSer and Supera deliver programming. 1,093 youth completed the program in 2022.
• CreeSer (Mexico)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2021Local NGO in Monterrey, Mexico implementing the girls program. Delivers curriculum entirely in Spanish within the school system. Received Trainer Certification in August 2023 to increase capacity for sustainability.
• Supera (Mexico)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2021Local NGO in Monterrey, Mexico implementing the boys program. Delivers curriculum entirely in Spanish within the school system. Received Trainer Certification in August 2023 to increase capacity for sustainability.
• Expanded Church Response (ECR) - ZambiacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021First Zambian scaling partner since 2021, providing training and support to new No Means No partner DAPP. ECR has been implementing the program since 2021 and has its own NMNW-certified Lead Trainers who can lead training without NMNW support.
• FHI 360coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2020FHI 360 has been running the No Means No program in Ethiopia since 2020 as part of USAID's Caring for Vulnerable Children activities focused on primary prevention of sexual and gender-based violence and HIV. The program is called 'IMpower-IMsafer' in Ethiopia and is implemented by 5 Prime Implementing Partners and 24 Local Implementing Partners across 7 regions. FHI 360 and NMNW jointly developed the Technical Program Quality Assessment (TPQA) tool.
• AVSI Foundation (Uganda)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2019AVSI Foundation in Uganda has implemented No Means No programming for girls and boys since 2019 as part of GBV and HIV prevention work. AVSI exemplifies the NMNW value of learning through efforts to build evidence about how the No Means No program addresses SGBV in the Uganda context through a longitudinal cohort study.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• International Rescue Committee: Major humanitarian NGO running women's protection and empowerment programs in conflict and crisis settings, including GBV prevention curricula for adolescents. Comparable programmatic approach and geographic footprint in many of NMNW's 13 countries.
• Population Council: International research nonprofit working on adolescent sexual and reproductive health, GBV prevention, and girls' empowerment. Comparable target population (10-20 year olds), evidence-based curricula, and similar institutional funder base (USAID, PEPFAR).
• Plan International: Large international development organization running adolescent-focused GBV prevention, girls' empowerment, and school-based programs globally. Comparable target demographic, multi-country reach, and similar reliance on institutional donors.
• CARE International: Major international humanitarian organization running girls' empowerment and GBV prevention programs (e.g., Tipping Point, She's Stronger) across many of the same geographies. Comparable institutional funder relationships and multi-country implementation model.
• Grassroot Soccer: Global health nonprofit using soccer to deliver adolescent health education, including HIV and GBV prevention. Most directly comparable as a youth-focused prevention organization using sport-based curriculum in Sub-Saharan Africa; NMNW's Executive Director co-founded and led Grassroot Soccer for 16 years.

Direct peers

• Ujamaa Africa: Kenyan NGO that originally developed and refined the IMpower ESD methodology starting in 2009, the direct precursor to NMNW's curriculum. Closely comparable on curriculum methodology (Empowerment Self-Defense) and East African delivery model.
• Promundo: Global nonprofit pioneering programs engaging men and boys in gender equality and violence prevention. Closely comparable on the boys' positive-masculinity curriculum side, with similar research-driven, evidence-based, multi-country partner-led delivery model.
• Raising Voices: Uganda-based nonprofit that created the SASA! and Voices curricula for violence prevention and gender equality. Comparable methodology (community-based, locally adapted GBV prevention training) and overlapping geography with NMNW's Uganda and East African operations.

Emerging players

• Youth Impact: Botswana-based nonprofit delivering evidence-based youth programs at scale through government partnerships (e.g., Teaching at the Right Level). Shares NMNW's government-co-delivery scaling approach in Southern Africa and has overlapping leadership networks.
• Together for Girls: Global public-private partnership focused on ending sexual violence against children and adolescents, with strong CDC, USAID, and PEPFAR backing. Comparable mission focus on childhood sexual violence prevention and overlapping institutional endorsement network.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/NMNW_IMPower
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/no-means-no-worldwide-org

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about No Means No Worldwide