African Higher Education in Emergencies Network - AHEEN

What African Higher Education in Emergencies Network - AHEEN does

AHEEN is a pan-African nonprofit network founded in 2020 and hosted by the University of Nairobi that delivers higher education and employment pathways to refugees and internally displaced persons across five African countries (Kenya, South Sudan, Burundi, Somalia, South Africa). Its core offering is the RDP Pathways Program, which connects refugees to accredited diploma and degree programs offered by member universities—including the University of Nairobi's Education in Emergencies and Community Interpreting diplomas—and links graduates to jobs in local and digital economies via a Gig Economy Toolkit developed under the Kingdom of the Netherlands–funded PROSPECTS Opportunity Fund.

The underlying technology is a low-resource digital learning architecture rather than a conventional edtech platform: solar-powered, offline-capable digital learning hubs are deployed in remote refugee camps with no grid power or internet (e.g., Kakuma, Kalobeyei, Dadaab), paired with proprietary handbooks (RLO-Universities Handbook, Digitisation Handbook), pioneering Research Ethics Guidelines for refugee context research, and the Integrative Social-Emotional Learning (DEPA) model. Complementary programming includes the Athletics & Education Model (Baseball5 with WBSC, Kids Athletics with World Athletics, and mainstreaming refugees into Athletics Kenya) and the Athletics+Education Model spanning secondary through tertiary levels, plus TVET/CBET courses through member Tumaini Innovation Center.

The business model is a nonprofit consortium financed through a multi-donor scholarship fund, expertise and consulting services (refugee-led research, policy advice on refugee management, digital learning in low-resource contexts), and facility or service sponsorship. The go-to-market is community-led and partnership-anchored: AHEEN operates through 12+ member organizations spanning universities, refugee-led organizations, TVET institutions, and consulting partners, with credibility signals from UNHCR, IGAD, and Kenya's Department of Refugee Services. Pricing is voluntary contribution-based with no publicly disclosed tuition or fees.

Name

African Higher Education in Emergencies Network - AHEEN

Legal name

African Higher Education in Emergencies Network

Website

https://aheen.net

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

AHEEN is a Nairobi-hosted, pan-African nonprofit network connecting refugees and internally displaced persons across five African countries to accredited higher education via member universities, solar-powered offline digital learning hubs, and athletics pipelines, then to local and digital economy jobs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Refugee Higher Education Services

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (611710), Vocational Rehabilitation Services (6243)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Refugee, Crisis & Humanitarian Education Partnerships (EiE) (EDADALAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Integration & Inclusion Services (Housing, Education, Employment) (BPADAHAI), Immigrant & Refugee Workforce Integration Programs (EDAAAOAJ), Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus & Resilience Programming (BPADAEAK), Online/Hybrid Lifelong Learning Platforms & Open Enrollment Programs (EDAAAEAL), Immigrant & Refugee Community Education (Integration/Navigation) (EDAAAFAH)

Keywords

• Refugee higher education
• Education in emergencies
• Digital learning hubs
• Refugee livelihood programs
• Displaced persons training

Headquarters

HQ city

Nairobi

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Multi-donor Scholarship Fund: AHEEN operates a multi-donor scholarship fund that combines contributions from multiple donors to support displaced students through to graduation. The fund is managed by the network with responsibility for distribution of funds, monitoring and evaluation, and program implementation.
2. Expertise and Consulting Services: AHEEN offers specialized resources including program implementation, African research, policy advice on refugee management, digital learning in low resource contexts, and refugee sports. Services are provided to partners seeking support in the higher education in emergencies sector.
3. Facility and Service Sponsorship: Corporate sponsors and organizations can provide services or physical items that support a refugee's education journey, including IT, legal, accounting, sports coaching, nutrition expertise, teaching, consulting, digital learning hubs, equipment, and other educational support materials.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

AHEEN operates a pan-African collaborative knowledge venture that delivers accredited higher education programs to refugees and internally displaced persons across five African countries. Its core offering is the Refugee Development Pathways (RDP) Program, which connects displaced learners to university-quality education through partner universities and then to real jobs in local and digital economies. The network supplements this with solar-powered offline-capable digital learning hubs, athletics and education programs, refugee-led research, policy advisory services, and diploma courses in Education in Emergencies and Community Interpreting.

Product overview

AHEEN is a pan-African collaborative knowledge venture that delivers higher education programs to refugees and internally displaced persons across Africa. The core offering is the RDP Pathways Program connecting refugees to accredited university education and employment pathways. AHEEN provides solar-powered digital learning hubs for offline-capable education delivery, the Athletics & Education Program integrating sports with educational frameworks, and specialized services including refugee-led research, policy advice, and the DEPA integrative social-emotional learning approach. The network offers educational resources including the RLO-Universities Handbook and Digitisation Handbook for crisis contexts, along with diploma programs in Education in Emergencies and Community Interpreting through partner universities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• RDP Pathways Program
• Digital Learning Hubs
• Refugee-Led Research & Data Insights
• Athletics & Education Program
• Policy Advice on Refugee Management
• RLO-Universities Handbook
• Digitisation Handbook
• Gig Economy Toolkit
• DEPA - Integrative Social-Emotional Learning
• Diploma in Education in Emergencies (EiE)
• Diploma in Community Interpreting

Quantifiable outcome

• 240+ training sessions delivered in first year of Baseball5 program
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 December 2025Partnership renewed to advance AHEEN Athletics & Education Program using Baseball5. WBSC finances the project with support from Olympic Solidarity and collaborates with AHEEN, Kenya Baseball Federation, Kenya Softball Federation, and NOC-K for program implementation.
• Tumaini Innovation Center (TIC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 October 2025Nonprofit social enterprise in Eldoret providing vocational training, mentorship, and community outreach to empower marginalized youth. Contributes expertise in inclusive vocational training and CBET delivery for displaced youth.
• Athletics KenyacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2025National athletics governing body that registered AHEEN refugee athletes and coaches in their system, enabling mainstreaming into national competitions including Kenya national trials for World Championships.
• IGAD (Intergovernmental Authority on Development)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional intergovernmental body that supports AHEEN's model and works with the network to shape regional refugee policies. AHEEN's leadership provides firsthand displacement insights combined with legal and economic expertise to help IGAD shape and implement progressive refugee policies.
• UNHCRcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUN refugee agency that believes in the AHEEN model and has commissioned AHEEN for research on education for urban refugees and asylum seekers in Kenya. Supports the network's efforts to create evidence on barriers and opportunities for refugee education.
• Kenya's Department of Refugee ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment body that believes in and supports the AHEEN model. Provides scholarship funding for refugee scholars and works with the network to implement national refugee education policies.
• University of NairobicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost organization for AHEEN. Provides program hosting for RDP pathways initiative, offers diplomas in Education in Emergencies and Community Interpreting, and hosts the Centre for Translation and Interpretation.
• Stellenbosch UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRepresents SU on both AHEEN Board and Steering Committee. Provides scholarship opportunities to RDP students and hosts the ADUN network responsible for creating professional digital learning for academics in the AHEEN RDP project.
• Kenyatta UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOffers Diploma, Bachelors and Masters programmes to persons displaced on African continents including refugees and internally displaced persons, strengthens capacity for digital learning, and promotes employability of graduates.
• University of JubacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier South Sudan university with approximately 40,000 students. Participates in AHEEN network through monthly sharing of information, workshops, and digital learning skills workshops for refugee students.
• Hope Africa UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChristian private university in Burundi with over 6,000 students. Offers diploma programs in Entrepreneurship and Agriculture and Zootechnics to displaced populations.
• WERK (Women Educational Researchers of Kenya)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProfessional Association of researchers that serves as legal host to refugee led organizations including financial management and reporting. Manages four learning hubs and provides gender and disability audits, athletics program management, and secondary school program management.
• Youth Education and Sports (YES)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRefugee-led organization providing holistic higher education experience integrating digital pedagogy, 21st-century skills, and Social-Emotional Learning frameworks for university students in Kakuma, Kalobeyei, Nairobi, and Dadaab.
• MDF Training & ConsultancysecondaryImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerGlobal training and consultancy partner contributing to all six pillars: retention & completion of secondary education, transition to tertiary education, transition to work, gender equity and disability inclusion, research, and capacity strengthening.
• African Athletics Development Center (AADC)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerInstitution mandated by World Athletics through Confederation of African Athletics to drive athletics development across Anglophone Africa. Delegated registrars to Kakuma Refugee Camp to register AHEEN refugee athletes.
• World AthleticssecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal athletics governing body through whose Kids Athletics initiative AHEEN participates, reaching over 2.5 million children globally with athletics programming in refugee camps.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/african-higher-education-in-emergencies-network

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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