Dyslexia Association of Sarawak

What Dyslexia Association of Sarawak does

The Dyslexia Association of Sarawak (DASwk) is a Sarawak-based non-governmental organization founded in April 2007 and registered under the Registrar of Societies Malaysia. It delivers literacy intervention, tutoring, and assessment services to individuals with dyslexia and related learning difficulties, serving children, students, indigenous communities, and incarcerated adults across Malaysia.

The association operates several core programmes built around its proprietary SMARTER*phonics literacy intervention, which has been formally adopted by the Sarawak State Education Department for statewide use in pre-schools. Additional services include one-on-one tutoring, online screening assessments, and a Literacy for Social Inclusion Programme that has been extended to the Temuan Orang Asli community in Selangor and to prison inmates through a partnership with the Prisons Department. Programmes are co-developed and co-funded with government departments, universities (UKM), and corporate donors.

DASwk generates revenue from a combination of tutoring fees, individual membership fees (approximately 200 registered members), and donations from corporate and institutional partners including Sarawak Energy Bhd, the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), and the US Embassy Kuala Lumpur. The organization has received the NGO Cemerlang award in 2018 and was named LSEG Charity Partner in 2019, and has signalled plans to establish a dedicated Dyslexia Learning Institute to formalize its operational infrastructure.

Name

Dyslexia Association of Sarawak

Legal name

Dyslexia Association of Sarawak

Website

https://dyslexia-swk.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Dyslexia Association of Sarawak is a Malaysian NGO founded in 2007 that delivers literacy intervention, tutoring, and screening for individuals with dyslexia, operating the proprietary SMARTER*phonics programme and serving children, indigenous communities, and prison inmates across Sarawak and Selangor.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Special Education and Dyslexia Intervention Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Exam Preparation and Tutoring (611691)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Dyslexia & Structured Literacy (Orton-Gillingham) Tutoring (EDANAFAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Multisensory Learning Programs & Curriculum for Dyslexia/LD (EDAKAJAL), Dyslexia Screening & Diagnostic Evaluation (EDAKAJAA), Learning Disabilities & Dyslexia Schools & Programs (EDAKAAAB)

Keywords

• Dyslexia intervention services
• Phonics literacy programmes
• Learning disability tutoring
• Special education support
• Community literacy outreach

Headquarters

HQ city

Kuching

HQ country

Malaysia

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: The organization relies on charitable donations from businesses and individuals. They have a dedicated donation page and accept contributions for their building fund project to establish the Dyslexia Learning Institute.
2. Tutoring Services: Provides tutoring services for children with dyslexia or other learning difficulties at their Learning and Resource Centre. Fee-based tutoring services during office hours.
3. Membership Fees: Offers membership options for supporters and families affected by dyslexia.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Dyslexia Association of Sarawak is a non-profit that provides direct tutoring and intervention services for children with dyslexia at its Learning & Resource Centre in Kuching, complemented by online screening checklists for children and adults, the state-adopted SMARTER*phonics literacy programme for pre-schools, and community literacy outreach programmes for marginalized groups. It sustains operations through donations, membership fees and tuition, while running awareness events and an online member forum.

Product overview

Dyslexia Association of Sarawak (DASwk) operates as a non-profit organization offering a portfolio of dyslexia assessment tools and educational programs. The core offerings include two online assessment checklists (for children and adults) available through their website, along with direct tutoring services at their Learning and Resource Centre in Kuching. Their programs include the state-adopted SMARTER*phonics literacy programme for pre-schools and the Literacy for Social Inclusion program targeting marginalized indigenous communities. They also maintain an online community forum for members across Malaysia. All services are provided free of charge to support children and adults with dyslexia and other learning disabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Online Children Dyslexia Screening Checklist Online screening checklist for parents to assess children for signs of dyslexia, covering indicators such as reading, spelling and writing difficulties. Self-serve resource available on the DASwk website.
• Online Adult Dyslexia Screening Checklist Online screening checklist for adults to self-assess for dyslexia symptoms, adapted from McLoughlin, Leather & Stringer (2002). Self-serve resource available on the DASwk website.
• Tutoring Services for Children with Dyslexia Direct fee-based tutoring services for children with dyslexia or other learning difficulties, delivered in person at the DASwk Learning & Resource Centre in Kuching (contact 082-242900 during office hours).
• SMARTER*phonics Literacy Programme Structured phonics-based literacy programme developed by DASwk to help children with dyslexia and other learning disabilities improve reading and writing. Adopted by the Sarawak State Education Department for use in all state pre-schools.
• Literacy for Social Inclusion Programme Outreach literacy programme for marginalised communities including Penan children of re-settled families in Murum, Sarawak and Temuan orang asli children and young adults in Selangor. Enhances BM and English reading and writing skills, delivered in partnership with Sarawak Energy Bhd, US Embassy Kuala Lumpur, UKM Institute of Ethnic Studies, Department of Orang Asli Development and Ministry of Welfare.
• Learning & Resource Centre (Kuching) Physical centre at Banglo Kalaka (Sri Meluan), Lorong Maxwell 2, Jalan Maxwell, 93000 Kuching, providing tutoring, intervention and resources for children and families affected by dyslexia. Headquartered facility of DASwk.

Quantifiable outcome

• SMARTER*phonics programme adopted by Sarawak State Education Department for all pre-schools
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Sarawak State Education DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Long-standing partnership where the department has adopted the SMARTER*phonics programme for use in all pre-schools under its jurisdiction. The programme has been used for the second year as of 2018. Collaborative work also includes literacy camps and educational outreach.
• Institute of Ethnic Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Collaborated on literacy camps for Temuan orang asli children in Kampung Kachau Luar and Kpg Gabai, Selangor. Academic partner providing research and expertise for literacy programmes.
• Department of Orang Asli Development, Hulu Langat, SelangormajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Partnered on literacy camps and programmes for Temuan orang asli children and young adults in Ulu Semenyih, focusing on Pemerkasaan programme for social inclusion.
• Ministry of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood DevelopmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Government ministry partner for literacy enhancement projects including programmes for inmates at Henry Gurney School, Puncak Borneo. Collaboration involves multiple departments.
• State Social Welfare Department SarawakcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Collaborated on Character Building Camp 2018 at Gunung Gading National Park, Lundu for children with dyslexia and other learning disabilities. Also partnered on rope skipping competition.
• State Forestry Department SarawakminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Partnered with State Social Welfare and Forestry Departments for Character Building Camp 2018 at Gunung Gading National Park, Lundu.
• Prisons Department MalaysiamajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Collaboration on Literacy Enhancement Project for Bahasa Melayu and English among inmates of Henry Gurney School, Puncak Borneo, Kuching.
• Sarawak State LibraryminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Partnered with State Social Welfare Department, State Education Department, and UNIMAS Medical Society for the 7th Annual Rope Skipping Competition.
• UNIMAS Medical SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Collaborated on 7th Annual Rope Skipping Competition for individuals with dyslexia and other learning disabilities.
• Sarawak Energy BhdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Collaborated on Literacy for Social Inclusion programme for Penan children of re-settled families in remote Sek Keb Metalun (6 hrs from Bintulu) and previously in Sek Keb Tegulang, Murum. Provided funding and operational support for literacy programmes targeting marginalized indigenous communities.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Persatuan Dyslexia Malaysia (Dyslexia Malaysia): National-level dyslexia advocacy and support body in Malaysia providing screening, awareness, and intervention services. Closest national counterpart to DASwk, with overlapping government and school engagement.
• SPELD Malaysia: Malaysian society supporting individuals with specific learning differences including dyslexia. Operates assessment, tutoring, and parent/teacher training services, making it a close domestic peer competing for similar Malaysian constituents and donor pools.
• Dyslexia Association of Singapore: National non-profit association providing dyslexia assessment, remediation, and teacher training across Singapore. Most direct functional peer to DASwk in terms of mission, service mix (assessment + structured literacy tutoring), and association/NGO structure within Southeast Asia.
• British Dyslexia Association: UK national charity offering dyslexia assessments, training, accreditation, and advocacy. Closely comparable model to DASwk as an association-driven dyslexia service provider, though at substantially greater scale and policy influence.

Broad incumbents

• Learning Disabilities Association of America (LDA): US national non-profit providing advocacy, resources, and support across learning disabilities. Mission-aligned peer serving similar populations through chapters and affiliates, but with substantially broader scope and scale.
• International Dyslexia Association: Global umbrella organization focused on dyslexia research, professional standards, and advocacy. Comparable in mission (structured literacy, screening, awareness) but operates at international scale and is not a regional service provider.
• Made By Dyslexia: Global dyslexia charity focused on awareness, teacher training, and workplace inclusion. Comparable mission overlap on advocacy and educator capacity-building, but with much broader international reach and digital-first delivery.
• National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD): US-based non-profit advocating for individuals with learning disabilities including dyslexia. Comparable in advocacy, screening tools, and policy engagement, but operates at national scale with a more political/legislative orientation.

Emerging players

• Davis Dyslexia Association International: International non-profit offering Davis Dyslexia Correction methodology, facilitator training, and licensing. Comparable as a structured alternative-literacy programme with global facilitator network; relevant competitor to SMARTER*phonics in the structured-intervention category.
• Decoding Dyslexia: US grassroots parent-led network advocating for dyslexia identification and structured literacy in schools. Comparable advocacy model and parent-community orientation to DASwk, but operates as a decentralized state-level movement rather than a service provider.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/144351438915353
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dyslexia-association-of-sarawak

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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