Educate Lanka Foundation

What Educate Lanka Foundation does

Educate Lanka Foundation (ELF) is a US-registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, with country operations in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The organization operates a peer-to-peer scholarship and skills-training platform that connects global individual donors with underprivileged students across 50+ districts in Sri Lanka. Its core offering is the Student Sponsorship Program, which matches donors directly to specific students at monthly tiers ranging from $10 to $25, with 100% of donated funds transferred as micro-scholarships. Complementary products include the Educate Lanka Fund (general pool covering sponsorship lapses and new scholars), the Skills for Future Program (project-based 21st-century skills training delivered via the ELYCA initiative), the Sri Lanka Recovery & Education Fund (disaster-relief programming in response to Cyclone Ditwah), and engagement tools such as birthday pledge campaigns, gift cards, and a self-serve fundraising campaign builder.

ELF runs on a donation-based revenue model with four primary streams: individual recurring sponsorships, unrestricted Educate Lanka Fund donations, corporate partnerships (notably The Mastercard Foundation, Mastercard, Deutsche Bank, and Sysco LABS), and project-based skills training fees or grants. Administrative overhead is reportedly covered separately by foundation grants and philanthropy benefactors, enabling the 100% pass-through pledge to scholars. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer via the website platform, supplemented by community-led engagement through local liaisons, alumni networks, parents, and educators in Sri Lanka, and event-driven fundraising through birthday pledges and personal campaigns. Distribution is digitally led through website, Medium blog, social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter), email newsletter, and peer-to-peer referral mechanisms.

The organization was founded in 2007 per firmographics with formal launch following seed funding from The Mastercard Foundation in 2013. To date, ELF has supported 3,140+ scholars, funded 12,000 cumulative years of education, disbursed $2 million in scholarships, and reached 15,000+ lives through its cyclone response. Core technology is not publicly disclosed; the platform is built around a self-serve web application supporting student profile browsing, sponsorship matching, donation processing, and campaign creation.

Name

Educate Lanka Foundation

Legal name

Educate Lanka Foundation

Website

https://educatelanka.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Educate Lanka Foundation is a US-registered 501(c)(3) non-profit operating a peer-to-peer micro-scholarship and skills-training platform that connects global donors with underprivileged students across 50+ districts in Sri Lanka.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Nonprofit Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Foundation/NGO & Philanthropic Scholarships (EDAIAOAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK), Country/Region-Specific Scholarships (Inbound/Outbound) (EDAIAOAC)

Keywords

• Education scholarships
• Nonprofit fundraising
• Micro-scholarship programs
• Skills training
• Student sponsorship

Headquarters

HQ city

Gaithersburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Student Sponsorships: Monthly recurring donations from individual sponsors funding specific students' education. 100% of sponsorship funds transferred as scholarships to sponsored students.
2. Educate Lanka Fund: General fund donations covering sponsorship lapses, early terminations, and new scholars until matched. Also funds skills training programs.
3. Corporate Partnerships: Strategic partnerships with corporations providing funding, mentorship programs, and program delivery support.
4. Skills Training Programs: Project-based skills training interventions including global citizenship, leadership, and 21st century skills development.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Educate Lanka Foundation operates a peer-to-peer scholarship platform connecting global sponsors with underprivileged Sri Lankan students. Sponsors fund individual students' education through monthly micro-scholarships starting at $10/month, with 100% of funds transferred to sponsored students. The organization also delivers project-based 21st-century skills training programs in collaboration with corporate and global partners.

Product overview

Educate Lanka Foundation operates a unified scholarship platform that connects Sri Lankan students facing financial barriers with global sponsors. The core offerings include a peer-to-peer Student Sponsorship Program (starting at $10/month with direct student matching), the Educate Lanka Fund (general funding pool for lapses and new students), and a Skills for Future Program (21st-century skills training). Additional engagement tools include a Birthday Pledge feature, Gift Cards, and a Fundraising Campaign Builder. The organization also manages specialized funds like the Sri Lanka Recovery & Education Fund and the Dr. Ranjit Weerakoon Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Educate Lanka Youth Change Agents (ELYCA): A project-based skills training intervention focused on developing 21st century skills including global citizenship and leadership.

Quantifiable outcome

• 6,500 people impacted through training projects
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ratnatunga Charity ProjectscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partnership since 2022 has been impactful and rewarding. RCP embodies shared values and purpose, fostering mutually fulfilling relationship that has driven significant impact and innovation on the ground.
• Smithsonian Science Education CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 20212021 partnership to pilot Global Goals curriculum in Sri Lanka integrated into Educate Lanka Youth Change Agents (ELYCA) program. Continues as field test partner for new curricula, embedding innovative programs into training initiatives.
• MastercardcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017First social-private partnership launched in 2017 focused specifically on women's empowerment. Created platform engaging Sri Lanka's corporate sector in directly investing social capital to provide better opportunities for the marginalized. Laid foundation for long-term, large-scale change.
• Deutsche BankminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Partnership enabled piloting of corporate mentorship program and expansion of micro-scholarships to reach more rural communities. Mentorship program fostered numerous impactful mentor-mentee relationships transformative for Educate Lanka graduates.
• Sysco LABScoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Partnership exemplifies how shared values of social and private sectors can address critical societal challenges. Since 2016, Sysco LABS has driven program innovations including transforming the new web platform, investing through CSR initiatives, and engaging employees in skills training and mentorship programs.
• St. Mark's School (USA)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Global Citizenship Institute partnership hosting Sri Lankan scholars in the U.S. and hosting U.S. students in Sri Lanka for cross-cultural immersion and shared learning.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• buildOn: International nonprofit delivering education and literacy programs to children and adults in developing countries, with similar grassroots community engagement and corporate volunteer involvement models.
• Educate!: Nonprofit delivering skills-based education and mentorship to youth in Uganda, Rwanda, and Kenya. Highly comparable model combining secondary education support with 21st-century skills training and mentorship.
• United World Schools: Nonprofit partnering with local communities to provide education to children in remote and post-conflict areas, including scholarship-adjacent support. Comparable community-driven education access mission.
• Room to Read: Global education nonprofit operating literacy and girls' education programs across multiple developing countries, including scholarship components. Closely comparable scholarship-plus-skills model serving marginalized students.
• CAMFED (Campaign for Female Education): International nonprofit providing secondary and tertiary education scholarships to girls in sub-Saharan Africa. Closely mirrors ELF's female-focused micro-scholarship approach combined with leadership and skills development.
• She's the First: US-based nonprofit funding scholarships for girls in low-income countries with direct sponsor-to-student matching similar to ELF's peer-to-peer sponsorship model.

Broad incumbents

• ChildFund International: International child-focused development organization sponsoring individual children including education support, with established sponsor-to-child model similar to ELF. Operates at much larger scale globally.
• Malala Fund: Global girls' education advocacy and grantmaking organization with substantially larger scale and brand. Operates in similar grantmaking and education access space but with advocacy-led rather than direct-service model.
• Plan International: Large international development NGO with substantial education programming, including scholarships and girls' education in South Asia. Comparable mission with significantly larger scale and portfolio breadth.

Regional players

• BRAC Education Programme: BRAC operates one of the world's largest non-governmental education programs in South Asia, including scholarship and skills training in Bangladesh and other regional markets. Comparable model in adjacent geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/educatelanka
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/educate-lanka-foundation-inc.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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 Educate Lanka Foundation