Together We Learn

What Together We Learn does

Together We Learn is a UK-registered nonprofit charity (Charity No. 1165953) with a parallel Ethiopian-registered entity (No. 5384), formed in September 2020 through the merger of Link Ethiopia and The Kindu Trust, both of which had operated in Ethiopia's Amhara and Oromia regions for more than 20 years. Operating from a London headquarters at 225-229 Seven Sisters Road (N4 2DA) with program offices in Gondar and Addis Ababa, the organization delivers five core programs: student sponsorship (£228 per year per child), school construction (61 classrooms built to date; £37,000 funds a two-classroom block), teacher training, girls' education (including menstrual hygiene support), and after-school Kindu Klub activities. Leadership comprises a UK-based Chief Executive and Country Director Elsa Kebede, supported by approximately 20 staff in Ethiopia (12 program, 8 support) and 3 part-time UK fundraising and project management staff. The 2025-2027 Strategic Vision emphasizes building Together We Learn Ethiopia's capacity to take greater ownership of program delivery, decision-making, and fundraising.

The business model is donation-driven rather than technology-driven. Revenue streams include monthly recurring child sponsorships, one-time project-based donations (e.g., £35 for a back-to-school package, £13 for a reusable period pack), matched-funding campaigns (£15,000 raised in the 2024 Big Give Christmas Challenge), corporate and institutional grants from partners including Jolly Learning, Open Hearts Big Dreams, Educational Opportunity Foundation, Tutu's Fund, and Chamber of Us, plus legacy gifts facilitated through the FreeWills partnership. Reported outcomes for 2023-24 include 165,000 students reached through teacher training, 1,800 students benefiting from new school facilities, 391 sponsored students, 130 students accessing higher education, and 32 schools participating in global linking and learning. There is no proprietary technology platform, app, or API disclosed; delivery is operational and physical (classrooms, libraries, toilets, training) rather than software-mediated.

Distribution is community-led across multiple channels: the website (twlethiopia.org), MailerLite email newsletters, social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube), the UK School Linking Programme pairing British and Ethiopian schools, volunteer visits and Ethiopia tours, supporter-organized fundraising events, and US partner charities for cross-border donations. No equity funding or AI/ML systems underpin the model; the organization's technology footprint is limited to standard donation processing, email marketing, and web presence.

Name

Together We Learn

Legal name

Together We Learn

Website

https://twlethiopia.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Together We Learn is a UK-registered nonprofit that delivers education programs in Ethiopia's Amhara and Oromia regions through student sponsorship, school construction, teacher training, girls' education, and after-school activities, serving disadvantaged children and families and funded by individual donors, corporate partners, and legacy gifts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Education Charity Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

NGO/Nonprofit Education Programs & Service Delivery (EDADALAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Partnerships for Equity, Inclusion & Gender (EDADALAF), Refugee, Crisis & Humanitarian Education Partnerships (EiE) (EDADALAG)

Keywords

• Education charity
• Child sponsorship
• School construction
• Girls education
• Teacher training

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Primary revenue source from individual donors, corporate donors, and institutional funders supporting education programmes in Ethiopia
2. Student Sponsorship: Monthly recurring donations from sponsors supporting individual children with school materials, fees, and family support
3. Project-Based Donations: One-time donations directed to specific projects such as school construction, teacher training, girls' education programmes
4. Legacy Gifts: Bequests and legacies left in supporters' wills to provide long-term sustainable funding

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Together We Learn is a registered charity that delivers education programmes for disadvantaged children in Ethiopia's Amhara and Oromia regions through five core areas: Student Sponsorship (recurring family financial support), School Construction (classrooms, libraries, sanitation), Girls' Education (menstrual hygiene and gender-focused interventions), Teacher Training (phonics literacy reaching tens of thousands of teachers), and Kindu Klub after-school programmes. The charity is funded by UK donors via sponsorships, project donations, and legacy gifts, with operations managed by Ethiopian staff in Gondar and Addis Ababa.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Student Sponsorship Recurring financial sponsorship programme (£228 per year) that links UK donors directly with individual disadvantaged children in Ethiopia, providing school materials, fees, and family support so students can stay in school.
• School Construction Construction of education infrastructure in Ethiopian schools, including new classrooms (£37,000 per two-classroom block), libraries, and sanitation facilities such as toilet blocks. 61 new classrooms have been built to date.
• Girls' Education Programme removing barriers to girls' school attendance and retention in Ethiopia, including reusable menstrual hygiene kit distribution (600 period packs distributed), girls' clubs, and gender-equality interventions. The Future Girls project achieved 100% retention versus an 18% regional dropout rate.
• Teacher Training Literacy and pedagogy training for Ethiopian teachers using Jolly Phonics and other phonics-based methods, in partnership with the Amhara and Oromia Regional Education Bureaus. Reached 165,000 students through teacher training in 2023-24 and over 3,000 education professionals trained in one autumn cohort.
• Kindu Klub After-school and early childhood development programme for sponsored children and their peers in Ethiopia, supporting wellbeing, supplementary learning, and family engagement.

Quantifiable outcome

• 165,000 students reached through teacher training in 2023-24
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Amhara Development Association (ADA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on school construction projects in the Amhara region. Partnered on Kebele 20 Kindergarten project, co-funding half of the total £26,000 construction cost.
• Amhara Regional Education BureaucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on English literacy teacher training project, providing regional support and validation for phonics training programmes.
• Oromia Regional Education BureaucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on education programmes in the Oromia region, supporting teacher training and girls' education initiatives.
• Children's Voices in ActionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegistered charity that helps put children's voices at the heart of monitoring and evaluation processes, designing play-based child-friendly consultation methods.
• The Chamber of UscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUS partner charity supporting construction projects and facilitating US donations. Provided additional grant for Kebele 20 Kindergarten construction.
• Jolly LearningcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides Jolly Phonics materials and trainers for improving literacy of students in Ethiopia through project work and teacher training.
• Open Hearts Big DreamscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUS organization that publishes colorful, culturally appropriate books for Ethiopian youth. Partnered on Hibret Elementary library project.
• EthiopiaidcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCharity champion for Big Give Christmas Challenge campaigns, providing matched funding for donations. Major supporter of multiple projects.
• Days for Girls UKminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDonates high quality reusable period packs for girls' education projects, supporting menstrual health management in schools.
• Wild FrontiersminorGTM or Marketing PartnerTravel company that funds girls' football team project through their travel fund, supporting young women to develop confidence, skills and fitness.
• FreeWills.co.ukminorGTM or Marketing PartnerProvides free Will writing service for supporters, enabling legacy giving to the organization.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Room to Read: Global education NGO focused on literacy, school libraries, and girls' education, with operating presence in Ethiopia. Comparable in school library development, teacher training, and girls' education programming.
• BuildOn: International NGO focused specifically on school construction in low-income countries, including in Africa, with a school-by-school donor funding model. Directly comparable in the school-construction programme line and donor-funded build economics.
• Plan International Ethiopia: Major international NGO running girls' education, school construction, and teacher training programmes across Ethiopia. Comparable in target population (children, especially girls), programme mix, and geographic footprint in Amhara and Oromia.
• ChildFund Ethiopia: Operates a child sponsorship and education programme in Ethiopia serving disadvantaged children, with a comparable international donor base funding school construction and teacher support. Direct competitor for sponsorship donors and Ethiopian school-construction contracts.
• SOS Children's Villages Ethiopia: Provides family-based care and education support for vulnerable children in Ethiopia, including sponsorship-style funding and school construction. Highly comparable operating model and beneficiary base, though with a broader care mandate.
• Ethiopiaid: UK-and-Ireland based charity championing Ethiopian development, including education. Directly comparable as a UK-rooted diaspora-style fundraising vehicle supporting Ethiopian community programmes, and an existing TWL partner and Big Give champion.

Emerging players

• War Child: UK-registered charity focused on education and protection for children affected by conflict, with programming in regions comparable to TWL's conflict-affected Amhara operating area. Comparable in mission (education access in fragile contexts) and UK donor base.
• VSO Ethiopia: International development organization placing volunteers to support education and teacher training in Ethiopia. Comparable in teacher training delivery and UK volunteer base, though operating via a volunteer-deployment model rather than direct sponsorship.

Broad incumbents

• Hope and Homes for Children: UK-registered charity working on children's welfare including education access, with comparable small-NGO structure and UK donor base. Overlaps on child sponsorship and family support themes, though with a different operational geography.
• Save the Children Ethiopia: Large international NGO delivering education, child protection, and school infrastructure programmes across Ethiopia. Competes for the same institutional funders and government partnerships but with a much broader portfolio and significantly larger budget.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC_zHSp0nqJquh30WlMqrniQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/twlethiopia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/together-we-learn-ethiopia
• Instagraminstagram.com/twl_ethiopia
• Xx.com/twl_ethiopia

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 Together We Learn