Girls In STEM Trust

What Girls In STEM Trust does

Girls In STEM Trust (GIST) is a Zimbabwean non-profit trust founded in 2018 and headquartered in Bulawayo, with 12 employees operating across at least three provinces (Harare, Bulawayo, and Masvingo). The organization's core mission is to close the gender gap in STEM participation by delivering robotics, digital skills, AI literacy, and financial literacy programming to girls and young women in rural and peri-urban Zimbabwe. Its flagship initiative is the World Robot Olympiad Zimbabwe national competition, which it organizes as the recognized national franchisee and which has produced international representatives for Zimbabwe at the World Robotics Olympiad finals. Adjacent programs include the Digital Skills Programme for Rural Girls (launched May 2024 with Naledi Girls Education), the Mum and Me menstrual health and hygiene initiative, the "From Algorithms to Impact" AI webinar series, and an NGO Management and Sustainability Workshop co-powered with Byo Tech Hub.

GIST's program portfolio spans hands-on robotics competitions, digital literacy training, educator upskilling, and supplementary social programming. Underlying technical components include robotics kits and competition infrastructure (delivered through provincial qualifiers and national finals hosted at the National University of Science and Technology), webinar platforms for AI-in-education content delivery, and structured curricula in programming, AI, robotics, and engineering developed in partnership with the Ministry of ICT. The organization also delivers adjacent capability programs such as financial literacy (partnered with Old Mutual) and NGO sustainability training.

GIST's business model is that of a grant-funded non-profit: revenue is generated through grants, donations, government program funding, corporate sponsorships, and partnerships with international exchange programs (notably the U.S. State Department's International Visitor Leadership Program). All core programs are delivered free of charge to beneficiaries. The organization pursues a community-led, event-driven go-to-market, anchored on direct school partnerships, government collaboration (formalized via an MOU with Zimbabwe's Ministry of ICT, Postal and Courier Services signed April 4, 2025), and national competition platforms. Distribution is exclusively domestic Zimbabwe, with no international operational footprint beyond competition representation.

Name

Girls In STEM Trust

Legal name

Girls In STEM Trust

Website

https://girlsinstemtrust.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Girls In STEM Trust is a Zimbabwean non-profit trust that delivers STEM education, robotics competitions (including the national World Robot Olympiad), digital literacy, and AI training programs to girls and young women across rural and peri-urban Zimbabwe, operating through school partnerships and government collaboration.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

STEM Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Computer Training (611420)

akta.pro primary industry

STEM, Digital Literacy & Maker Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

STEM Project-Based Learning (PBL) & Challenge Platforms (EDAFANAI), Math & STEM Learning Technology (incl. Coding/Robotics Platforms) (EDAJAMAG), AI & Emerging Technology Literacy (EDAAAIAJ)

Keywords

• STEM education programs
• Robotics competitions
• Digital literacy training
• Girls education initiatives
• AI education webinars

Headquarters

HQ city

Bulawayo

HQ country

Zimbabwe

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding and Donations: As a non-profit trust, GIST operates primarily through grants, donations, and partnerships with government agencies, international programs, and corporate sponsors. Revenue supports program delivery, event organization, and operational costs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Girls In STEM Trust is a Zimbabwean non-profit organization that delivers STEM education programs to girls and young women, with a focus on rural and peri-urban communities. Its core offerings include robotics training through the World Robot Olympiad Zimbabwe national competition, a Digital Skills Programme for Rural Girls, AI-focused webinars, digital literacy training, and NGO sustainability workshops. Programs are delivered through direct partnerships with schools, universities, and the Ministry of ICT.

Product overview

Girls In STEM Trust operates as a non-profit educational organization focused on empowering girls and young women in Zimbabwe through STEM education. The organization offers a portfolio of programs including the Digital Skills Programme for Rural Girls, which provides digital literacy training; the World Robot Olympiad Zimbabwe Competition for robotics education; and the Mum and Me Program addressing menstrual health and hygiene. Additional offerings include AI-focused workshops like the International Visitor Leadership Program and the 'From Algorithms to Impact' webinar series, NGO management training workshops, and financial literacy programs. Through partnerships with government ministries and educational institutions like NUST, the organization delivers training in programming, AI, robotics, and engineering to students and teachers across Zimbabwe.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Digital Skills Programme for Rural Girls Educational initiative empowering girls in rural and peri-urban areas of Zimbabwe with essential digital skills to become active participants in their communities and pursue future STEM careers.
• Mum and Me Program Menstrual health and hygiene education program designed to educate mothers and daughters together, including pad donations to support young girls.
• World Robot Olympiad Zimbabwe Competition Annual national robotics competition bringing together teams from Harare, Bulawayo, and Masvingo to compete, with winners advancing to represent Zimbabwe at the international World Robotics Olympiad.
• Digital Literacy Training Structured curriculum covering programming, AI, robotics, and engineering for students and teachers across Zimbabwe, developed through partnership with the Ministry of ICT.
• STEM Entrepreneurship Programs Programs supporting STEM startups and entrepreneurship development for creating digitally literate entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe.
• NGO Management and Sustainability Workshop Training workshop providing NGOs with essential toolkits, templates, and expert facilitation for organizational growth and sustainability.
• AI in STEM Education Webinar Series Webinar series exploring AI's transformative role in STEM education, featuring expert panelists discussing personalized learning, gender inclusion, and ethical AI integration.

Quantifiable outcome

• GIST supported Zimuto High School to become World Robot Olympiad 2024 Senior Category Champions and represent Zimbabwe internationally in Turkey
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

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

• Zimbabwe Ministry of ICT, Postal and Courier ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 April 2025Formal MOU signed between Minister T.A. Mavetera and GIST founder Victoria Nxumalo for enhanced collaboration in organizing World Robot Olympiad, training in programming, AI, robotics and engineering for students and teachers, and STEM entrepreneurship programs.
• International Visitor Leadership ProgrammajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 October 2024GIST hosted the IVLP Impact Award Project Zimbabwe 2024, a three-day hands-on session at NUST providing educators with insights into leveraging AI in education. International program supporting STEM education advancement.
• Byo Tech HubcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 July 2024Co-powered NGO Management and Sustainability workshop held July 30-31, 2024, bringing together individuals dedicated to making a difference. GIST and Byo Tech Hub collaborated to provide toolkits, templates, and expert facilitation for nonprofit sector growth and innovation.
• National University of Science and Technology (NUST)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Host institution for World Robot Olympiad Zimbabwe 2024 national finals. Provides venue and academic partnership for GIST's flagship robotics competition and International Visitor Leadership Program workshops.
• Naledi Girls EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2024Collaborative partnership for the Digital Skills Programme for Rural Girls Initiative. Launched at Lochview Primary School in peri-urban Bulawayo to equip girls with vital digital skills.
• Old MutualminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 21 March 2024GIST participated in Old Mutual On the Money 2024, a Women's Month financial empowerment event. Collaboration focused on financial literacy education as part of holistic girls' empowerment programming.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• WAAW Foundation: Working to Advance Women in STEM in Africa; provides STEM scholarships and training to African women. Directly comparable mission of advancing women/girls in STEM across the African continent.
• Black Girls CODE: U.S.-based non-profit introducing girls of color ages 7-17 to computer science and technology. Directly comparable in mission to introduce girls of underrepresented backgrounds to programming, robotics, and STEM.
• African Girls Can Code Initiative: UN Women/UNDP/African Union initiative training African girls aged 17-25 in coding, robotics, and ICT. Closely comparable in target audience, geography, and core curriculum.
• STEMi Makers Africa: Africa-wide STEM education non-profit offering project-based STEM and maker programs for African youth. Comparable geographic focus, target audience, and STEM/coding curriculum model.
• Technovation Global: Global non-profit running technology entrepreneurship programs for girls ages 10-18. Comparable in girls-in-tech mission, competition-driven model, and AI/digital skills curriculum.

Others

• TechnoServe: International non-profit working with enterprising people in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses, and industries. Adjacent in operating across Africa with entrepreneur-support programs; relevant comparator for NGO operational scale and partnership models rather than direct mission overlap.

Broad incumbents

• Code.org: U.S. non-profit expanding access to computer science in schools with K-12 coding curriculum. Comparable in K-12 STEM/computer science education mission but operates at a vastly larger scale, primarily U.S.-focused.
• AnitaB.org: Global non-profit advancing women in computing through programs like Topcoder and mentorship. Comparable in mission to advance women/girls in technology but operates globally rather than concentrated in one African market.
• African Leadership Academy: Pan-African college preparatory institution focused on developing Africa's future leaders with a STEM emphasis. Comparable in targeting high-potential African youth for STEM/leadership pathways but at a much larger, residential scale.
• Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator: South African non-profit addressing youth unemployment through skills training including digital and technology skills. Comparable in African youth digital skills development mission but with a broader employment-focus beyond gender-specific STEM.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/girlsinstemzw
• Facebookfacebook.com/girlsinstemzw
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/girls-in-stem-trust
• Instagraminstagram.com/girlsinstemzw

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Girls In STEM Trust