SustainMe

What SustainMe does

SustainMe is a non-profit organization (NGO registration INDR142692092NB) founded in 2013 and headquartered in Jinja, Uganda, dedicated to empowering vulnerable women, girls, and families in and around Nyenga to escape poverty and gender-based barriers. The organization delivers a portfolio of community-based programs rather than a technology product, with core offerings spanning microfinance (small loans as low as $29/$29–$130), business skills training, vocational skills development (sewing, farming, hair dressing, catering/bakery, crafts), one-to-one mentorship, health and sanitation initiatives (mosquito nets, tippy taps, menstrual hygiene), and youth-focused programs (Elsom Star Girls, Senior Girls Camp). Physical infrastructure includes the Women Empowerment Center, Esuubi Her Skills Centre, and Kamu Kamu Skills and Trade Centre, operated through local staff, volunteers, and Northwestern University interns.

The business model is donation-driven and non-commercial. SustainMe operates entirely on charitable contributions from individuals, churches, organizations, and foundations, channeled through website donations, partnerships (e.g., St. Martin's Church Walsall, Inner Wheel, FSD Uganda), and the Inspiring Gifts catalog, which lists unit-priced impact items such as sewing machines ($120), bicycles ($130), goats ($58), school fees ($45), microfinance seed ($30–$70), mosquito nets ($10), and medical care ($100). Distribution is direct-to-beneficiary through field workers and community women leaders in a single-country Uganda footprint, with international awareness scaled via the Global Ambassadors volunteer program.

To date, SustainMe has supported over 350 vulnerable women across Nyenga and surrounding communities, graduated 21 women from a finance and business skills training cohort, and served 51 families (255 lives) through its Share a Meal initiative. The organization is actively operating, with program announcements as recent as 2026, and is governed by a founder-led, community-based model with no disclosed parent company, equity investors, or institutional funding rounds.

Name

SustainMe

Legal name

SustainMe

Website

https://sustainme.org.ug

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SustainMe is a Uganda-based non-profit NGO founded in 2013 that empowers vulnerable women, girls, and families in Nyenga through microfinance, vocational skills training, mentorship, and health programs, funded primarily by donations and charitable contributions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Jinja

HQ country

Uganda

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: SustainMe operates entirely on donations from individuals, churches, organizations, and foundations. They receive one-time and recurring donations through their website, inspiring gifts program, and partner platforms like Giveway.com.
2. Inspiring Gifts Program: Donors can purchase specific items (sewing machines, goats, bicycles, school fees, medical care) that directly benefit women and families. This gift catalog approach allows donors to see exactly how their contribution is used.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

SustainMe is a Uganda-based non-profit that empowers vulnerable women, girls, and families in rural communities around Jinja to rise above poverty and gender-based barriers. It delivers a holistic package of microfinance and small loans, business and vocational skills training (sewing, farming, hair dressing, catering/bakery, crafts), mentorship, health and sanitation programs (malaria prevention, tippy taps, menstrual hygiene), and girls' education support. Programs are delivered through the Women Empowerment Center, Esuubi Her Skills Centre, Kamu Kamu Skills and Trade Centre, and direct community field operations, funded primarily by donations.

Product overview

SustainMe is a non-profit organization (NGO) based in Uganda operating as a social enterprise focused on women's empowerment and poverty alleviation. The organization offers a portfolio of interconnected programs rather than a traditional technology product. Core offerings include microfinance and small loans (ranging from £23/$29 to £117/$143) paired with comprehensive business skills training covering finance, record-keeping, and business planning. The Kamu Kamu Skills and Trade Centre and Women Empowerment Center provide hands-on vocational training in sewing, crafts, farming, catering, bakery, and hair dressing. Additional programs include the Give a Goat livestock project, Mentorship Programme, Menstrual Hygiene Program, and the Elsom Star Girls/Senior Girls Camp for youth. Fundraising vehicles include Inspiring Gifts (catalog of specific donation items), Share a Meal annual program, and a Global Ambassadors advocacy network. The organization partners with FSD Uganda, Northwestern University interns, and St. Martin's Church Walsall to deliver programs to vulnerable women in Nyenga and surrounding communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Microfinance and Small Loans Provides small loans as low as $29 to vulnerable women in rural Uganda to start or expand small businesses, enabling economic independence and the ability to provide for their families.
• Business Skills Training Comprehensive finance and business skills training covering record keeping, customer care, business planning, marketing, profit-loss analysis, and money management, with certificate awards upon completion, targeted at vulnerable women starting small businesses.
• Kamu Kamu Skills and Trade Centre Skills centre where vulnerable women acquire hands-on vocational skills in hair dressing, sewing, crafts, and run businesses within the same skills.
• Women Empowerment Center Comprehensive empowerment centre providing financial literacy, business skills, and hands-on practical skills including sewing, modern farming, hair dressing, and catering/bakery, along with reproductive health education, Bible study, counseling, and mentorship support.
• Esuubi Her Skills Centre Established skills centre that equips women with practical vocational skills to enable economic empowerment and self-sufficiency.
• Give a Goat Project Livestock-based empowerment project providing goats to vulnerable women as a tool to fight poverty, generating long-term income through goat reproduction and milk production.
• Mentorship Programme One-to-one mentoring sessions focusing on record keeping and data analysis, providing women with additional support to understand and develop their businesses, moving theory into practice.
• Menstrual Hygiene Program Girls Lead movement initiative providing sustainable menstrual solutions including sanitary pads and training on making reusable sanitary pads to reduce school dropout rates among girls.
• Elsom Star Girls Program and Senior Girls Camp Girls' empowerment programs providing mentorship, skills development, and support to help young women stay in school and avoid early marriage; Senior Girls Camp serves as an extension of the broader Elsom Star Girls Program.
• Share a Meal Annual Christmas initiative providing food baskets with items including meat, sweets, bread, sugar, cooking oil, salt, soap, rice, and wheat to poor families; in 2022 served 51 families impacting 255 lives.

Quantifiable outcome

• 350+ women supported with microfinance and training
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 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

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• FSD Uganda (Foundation for Sustainable Development)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Hosted Northwestern University interns through FSD Uganda partnership. Interns conducted community assessment and research, set up Kamu Kamu Skills and Trade Centre, trained women on tippy taps, and sensitized on health issues. Partnership enables virtual internship programs and business collaboration training for women.
• Northwestern UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Hosted 4 interns (Rebecca, Tyler, Leana, and Sikandar) through FSD Uganda partnership. Interns conducted community research and implemented projects focusing on improving health and building skills of vulnerable women and families.
• Foundation for Sustainable Development (FSD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFSD partnered with SustainMe on finance and business skills training project. Enabled 21 vulnerable women to receive skills in business and finance through a one-month training program.
• FSD JinjacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFSD Jinja partnered with Virtual Internship program to provide business collaboration training to women including Annet and Gertrude, enabling them to maximize profits through local brewing business.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• FINCA International: Microfinance institution serving low-income entrepreneurs in Africa and other developing regions through village banking and small loans. Comparable model of group-based microfinance and women's entrepreneurship support.
• BRAC: One of the world's largest development NGOs, operating microfinance, women's empowerment, and skills training programs across multiple countries including Uganda. Directly comparable to SustainMe in mission and core activities but at vastly greater scale and broader geographic reach.
• Heifer International: Global nonprofit focused on ending poverty through livestock and agricultural empowerment, with a signature 'Give a Goat'-style model that closely mirrors SustainMe's Give a Goat Project. Comparable in target population (rural women) and the use of livestock asset transfers as a pathway out of poverty.
• Opportunity International: Microfinance and small-business support organization serving entrepreneurs in developing countries, including Uganda. Comparable core offering of small loans plus business training to women operating microenterprises.
• World Vision International: Large Christian humanitarian organization operating child sponsorship, microfinance, and community development programs in Uganda. Comparable in target geography and use of community-based programming, though available at far greater scale.
• Grameen Foundation: Global nonprofit extending the Grameen microfinance model to underserved populations, with programs in East Africa. Highly comparable to SustainMe's microfinance-plus-training methodology but operating at significantly larger institutional scale.
• CARE International: Major humanitarian NGO with extensive women's economic empowerment programming in Uganda and East Africa. Comparable target demographic and rural livelihood focus, though operating at significantly larger scale as a broad incumbent.

Direct peers

• Women for Women International: Nonprofit dedicated to supporting women survivors of war and conflict through vocational training, savings programs, and rights awareness. Operates in Africa including similar settings to Uganda and pursues a comparable holistic model of economic empowerment, skills training, and social support for vulnerable women.

Emerging players

• GiveDirectly: Cash transfer nonprofit operating in East Africa (Kenya, Uganda) that provides direct unconditional payments to households in extreme poverty. Partial overlap with SustainMe's economic empowerment focus; differs in using direct cash transfers rather than microfinance plus training.
• Shivia: UK-registered nonprofit that empowers rural women in India through microfinance and livelihood training. Comparable in its integrated microfinance-plus-training model and women-focused rural livelihood work, though operating in a different geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Sustain4Me
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sustainmeug

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 SustainMe