LAPAS
LAPAS is a Riga-based, membership-driven NGO platform founded in 2004 that coordinates 46 Latvian non-governmental organizations working in development cooperation, sustainable development, global citizenship education, humanitarian aid, and community resilience, primarily funded by institutional grants.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersRiga, Latvia
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What LAPAS does
LAPAS (legal name Biedrība "Latvijas Platforma attīstības sadarbībai") is a Riga-based, membership-driven NGO platform founded on August 12, 2004, that coordinates 46 Latvian non-governmental organizations working in development cooperation, sustainable development, global citizenship education, humanitarian aid, and community resilience. The organization operates as the secretariat of the National Multistakeholder SDG Coalition since October 31, 2019, and represents Latvian civil society within international networks including CIVICUS, CONCORD Europe, AGNA, and FORUS.
Its product portfolio centers on a free online Knowledge Platform (lapas.thinkific.com) launched on January 25, 2024, hosting self-paced courses on development cooperation, humanitarian aid, global education, sustainable development, and community resilience, alongside a library of branded methodologies and strategic documents (Global Education Roadmap, Human Security at Community Level Handbook, Development Cooperation Guidelines, SDGs Implementation Methodology for Civil Society, AidWatch reports). The technology stack is intentionally lightweight: Thinkific for LMS, the lapas.lv content site, and standard email/newsletter distribution, with no proprietary software platform.
LAPAS runs a non-profit, community-led go-to-market model funded primarily by institutional grants from the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the EEA/Norway Grants Active Citizen's Fund, the European Commission, the Nordic Council of Ministers, SIF, and other project-based donors, supplemented by membership contributions from its 46 member NGOs. Distribution occurs through member coordination, project competitions (notably "LAPAS savieno," which received 43 applications and approved 18 projects in its fourth round), public events such as the LAMPA Conversation Festival and the annual Global Education Week, and direct engagement with municipalities, universities, and the State Fire and Rescue Service (VUGD) on community resilience programming. The organization is supported by a 7-person staff led by Director Inese Vaivare, with governance provided by an 8-member board chaired by Dā niels Zeltiņš.
LAPAS firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- LAPAS
- Legal name
- Biedrība "Latvijas Platforma attīstības sadarbībai"
- Website
- https://lapas.lv
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- LAPAS is a Riga-based, membership-driven NGO platform founded in 2004 that coordinates 46 Latvian non-governmental organizations working in development cooperation, sustainable development, global citizenship education, humanitarian aid, and community resilience, primarily funded by institutional grants.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
LAPAS industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Development Cooperation Services
- NAICS
- Business Associations (813910), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), International Affairs (92812)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600), International Affairs (9721), Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Technical Cooperation, Capacity Building & Policy Advisory Programs (BPADABAO)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Health Systems Strengthening & Global Health Technical Assistance (BPADAEAH), Assessment, Certification & Qualifications Frameworks (BPADAKAL), On-Site Mentoring, Supervision & Program Management Services (EDAIAFAM), United Nations System & Specialized Agencies (BPADAAAA)
Keywords
Where LAPAS is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Riga
- HQ country
- Latvia
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
LAPAS business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Institutional Funding and Grants: LAPAS operates primarily through institutional funding from government bodies and international organizations including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Commission, Active Citizen's Fund (EEA/Norway Grants), EuropeAid, European Council, EU Aid Volunteers, Europe for Citizens Programme, EEA grants, SIF, Nordic Council of Ministers, and various project-based funding.
- Membership Fees: LAPAS is a membership-based organization with 46 member NGOs. While specific membership fees are not disclosed, membership supports the platform's coordination and representation functions.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
LAPAS product offering
Product offeringCore offering
LAPAS is a membership-based NGO platform that coordinates 46 Latvian non-governmental organizations working on development cooperation, humanitarian aid, global citizenship education, community resilience, and Sustainable Development Goals implementation. It delivers free online courses via its Knowledge Platform (lapas.thinkific.com), in-person training courses on development cooperation, humanitarian aid, and community resilience, methodology guides including the Global Education Roadmap and Human Security Handbook, annual AidWatch monitoring reports on EU Official Development Assistance, and the Global Education Week awareness program. Its coordinating function includes representing Latvian civil society in international networks (CIVICUS, CONCORD Europe, AGNA) and serving as secretariat of the National Multistakeholder SDG Coalition since October 31, 2019.
Product overview
LAPAS (Latvijas Platforma attīstības sadarbībai) is a national NGO platform uniting 46 organizations working for sustainable development. Rather than a unified software product, LAPAS offers a portfolio of educational resources, methodologies, and training programs. The core offerings include the LAPAS zināšanu platforma (Knowledge Platform) hosted on Thinkific for self-paced courses, the Global Education Roadmap as a strategic guide, the Human Security Handbook for community-level implementation, and the AidWatch annual monitoring reports. Additional products include training courses on development cooperation, humanitarian aid, and community resilience, along with various methodology guides and strategic documents for Sustainable Development Goals implementation. The platform also organizes the annual Global Education Week initiative and produces research publications on development cooperation policy.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- LAPAS Knowledge Platform (LAPAS zināšanu platforma) Online learning platform offering self-paced courses on development cooperation, humanitarian aid, global citizenship education, sustainable development, and community resilience topics. Access is free; intended for civil society practitioners, educators, and NGO staff in Latvia.
- Training Course on Development Cooperation Educational course covering development cooperation principles and practices for civil society organizations and practitioners.
- Training Course on Humanitarian Aid Educational course covering humanitarian aid principles, volunteer coordination, and disaster response for civil society organizations.
- Training Course on Community Resilience Educational course covering community resilience concepts, crisis preparedness, civil defense, and societal security for local communities.
- Global Education Week Annual program featuring dozens of events across regions, themed film months, newspaper 'Pasaule kļūst labāka', discussions, conferences, continuing education courses, and methodological materials focused on global citizenship education.
- AidWatch Reports Annual reports monitoring and providing recommendations on the quality and quantity of Official Development Assistance (ODA) provided by the European Union and European Commission.
Quantifiable outcome
- 46 member organizations coordinated through single platform
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use LAPAS
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
LAPAS technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
LAPAS partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major, regional and project.
- CIVICUScoreGlobal civil society alliance where LAPAS represents Latvian NGOs. CIVICUS brings together civil society organizations worldwide for advocacy and network strengthening.
- CONCORD EuropecoreEuropean confederation of development NGOs where LAPAS participates in AidWatch monitoring and policy advocacy. LAPAS contributes to annual reports on EU development assistance quality.
- AGNA (Act Global Network Alliance)coreGlobal network of NGO alliances for development cooperation coordination and mutual learning.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of LatviacorePrimary government partner for development cooperation policy planning and implementation since 2004. LAPAS provides input on national positions and participates in Advisory Council for Development Cooperation.
- Latvian National LibrarymajorCollaboration on libraries as democracy and development hubs, including joint projects on community resilience and media literacy.
- ADRA LatviamajorMember organization and partner in humanitarian aid projects including donations for Nepal earthquake, Italy earthquake, Philippines earthquake, and Ukraine Euromaidan.
- Vidzeme University CollegemajorAcademic partner for research, methodology development, and training on community resilience and development cooperation.
- Valsts ugunsdzēsības un glābšanas dienests (VUGD)majorState Fire and Rescue Service partnership for civil protection training and community resilience programs including 'Drošība sākas ar Tevi' project.
- Estonian Roundtable for Development CooperationregionalBaltic regional partnership for development cooperation coordination and knowledge exchange between neighboring countries.
- Croatian Platform for International Citizen Solidarity (CROSOL)regionalJoint campaigns on illiberal democracy including 'The Power of the Word' graffiti wall campaign across Latvia, Croatia, Hungary, and Slovenia.
- Laiks JauniešiemprojectProject partner in 'Efektīvs un atbildīgs attīstības sadarbības finansējums' project on development cooperation financing monitoring.
- Riga TechGirlsprojectProject partner on digitalization aspects of global partnerships and development cooperation.
- Papardes ziedsprojectMember organization and project partner on gender equality aspects of global partnerships.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
LAPAS competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- ForumCiv (Swedish Platform for Global Development): Swedish national NGO platform for global development — same membership-organization structure coordinating civil society voice on development cooperation policy in an EU member state.
- Estonian Roundtable for Development Cooperation (AKÜ): Estonian national platform for development cooperation NGOs — same membership-based NGO platform model, same Baltic regional context, and an explicit bilateral partnership partner of LAPAS.
- Latvian Civic Alliance (NVO): Latvian umbrella organization for civil society. Domestic peer operating a similar membership-platform model and convening NGOs around civic space and policy issues in Latvia.
- Kehys (Finnish NGDO Platform): Finnish national platform of development NGOs. Directly comparable as a Nordic peer with similar membership-based NGO platform model focused on development cooperation policy advocacy.
- Czech Platform for Development Cooperation (FoRS): Czech national platform for development cooperation NGOs. Direct EU peer with similar membership-platform structure for development policy advocacy and education.
- CROSOL (Croatian Platform for International Citizen Solidarity): Croatian NGO platform for international citizen solidarity and development cooperation. Direct peer in another EU member state; co-implements campaigns with LAPAS such as 'The Power of the Word'.
Regional players
- Eurodad: European network on debt and development that co-publishes AidWatch reports with CONCORD. Overlapping on development finance monitoring and policy advocacy with LAPAS's AidWatch work.
Broad incumbents
- CONCORD Europe: European confederation of national NGO platforms for development cooperation. Directly comparable as LAPAS is a member and participates in AidWatch; CONCORD is the supranational coordination layer that LAPAS engages with.
- CIVICUS: Global civil society alliance that LAPAS belongs to. Comparable as a higher-tier membership alliance for civil society organizations operating in development cooperation and civic space advocacy.
Emerging players
- AGNA (Act Global Network Alliance): Global network of NGO alliances for development cooperation coordination and mutual learning. Comparable as a network peer that LAPAS belongs to and coordinates with on cross-national capacity building.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
LAPAS social profiles
Digital presenceLAPAS financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
LAPAS leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
LAPAS funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
LAPAS M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about LAPAS
What does LAPAS do?
LAPAS is a membership-based NGO platform that coordinates 46 Latvian non-governmental organizations working on development cooperation, humanitarian aid, global citizenship education, community resilience, and Sustainable Development Goals implementation. It delivers free online courses via its Knowledge Platform (lapas.thinkific.com), in-person training courses on development cooperation, humanitarian aid, and community resilience, methodology guides including the Global Education Roadmap and Human Security Handbook, annual AidWatch monitoring reports on EU Official Development Assistance, and the Global Education Week awareness program. Its coordinating function includes representing Latvian civil society in international networks (CIVICUS, CONCORD Europe, AGNA) and serving as secretariat of the National Multistakeholder SDG Coalition since October 31, 2019.
Is LAPAS a public or private company?
LAPAS is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was LAPAS founded?
LAPAS was founded in 2004. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is LAPAS based?
LAPAS is headquartered in Riga, Latvia, in the Europe region.
How does LAPAS make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Institutional Funding and Grants are the primary driver. The others are membership Fees.
Who are LAPAS's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are ForumCiv (Swedish Platform for Global Development), Estonian Roundtable for Development Cooperation (AKÜ), Latvian Civic Alliance (NVO), Kehys (Finnish NGDO Platform), Czech Platform for Development Cooperation (FoRS) and CROSOL (Croatian Platform for International Citizen Solidarity). Eurodad is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are CONCORD Europe and CIVICUS. AGNA (Act Global Network Alliance) is listed as an emerging player.
Does LAPAS have an API?
No public API is recorded for LAPAS.
What industry is LAPAS in?
LAPAS's product category is Development Cooperation Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPADABAO, Technical Cooperation, Capacity Building & Policy Advisory Programs, with a secondary code of BPADAEAH, Health Systems Strengthening & Global Health Technical Assistance. Its NAICS code is 813910 and its SIC code is 8600.