What Fondazione Italia Uganda does

Fondazione Italia Uganda per l'opera di padre Giovanni Scalabrini ETS is an Italian nonprofit foundation established in 2000 to continue the 50+ year humanitarian mission of Father Giovanni 'John' Scalabrini, an Italian missionary active in Uganda from 1964 until his death in 2016. Registered in Milan (Via Vincenzo Monti 34) with an 11-person staff and an operational base in Luzira, Kampala, the foundation executes four intervention pillars — Education, Health, Vocational Training and Employment, and Community — through owned physical infrastructure including the Bishop Cipriano Kihangire primary and secondary schools, the Benedict Medical Centre, 14 vocational workshops (employing 64 workers), and the Father John Scalabrini Vocational Institute under construction (planned 1,200 students/day).

The foundation's product surface is a portfolio of named humanitarian programs rather than a unified technology platform: maternal health ('Diventare Mamma in Uganda,' 1,142 mothers served since 2019), urban farming ('Semi di Speranza,' 530 families reached), school feeding ('Peacefeeding,' 2,237 children at four schools), disabled-child care home support (760+ children across 11 care homes), emergency food distribution, and a digital distance-sponsorship product called Praise that links donors to specific children at the BCK school via photos, videos, report cards, and direct messaging. The Praise platform is the foundation's only proprietary technology asset; broader technology use is limited to standard donation management software and conventional web/social channels.

The revenue model is multi-stream philanthropy: one-time and recurring individual donations via the foundation website with tiered impact amounts (€12, €39, €77), the recurring distance-sponsorship subscription on Praise, corporate partnerships (Lavazza, Mediolanum, Milan, Museke), legacy bequests, the Italian 5x1000 tax allocation, and government grant funding from AICS. Pricing is unit-based donation-impact tiers with no commercial product revenue. The foundation operates as a non-profit charitable organization with no equity, no parent company, no funding rounds, and no disclosed financial statements.

Name

Fondazione Italia Uganda

Legal name

Fondazione Italia Uganda per l'opera di padre Giovanni Scalabrini ETS

Website

https://italiauganda.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fondazione Italia Uganda is an Italian nonprofit foundation that directly operates schools, a hospital, vocational workshops, and community programs serving children, mothers, and families in the slums of Kampala, Uganda, funded by individual donations, distance sponsorships, Italian corporate partnerships, and government grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Development and Humanitarian Aid

NAICS

Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services (6242), Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Community Food Services (624210), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

International & Local Implementing NGOs (HLAJAKAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH), Maternal, Newborn, Child & Adolescent Health (MNCAH) NGOs (HLAJAKAG), International Development & Donor-Funded Education Programs (EDADALAB), Medical Missions & Global Health NGOs (BPAGACAI)

Keywords

• Humanitarian aid
• International development
• Educational support
• Community healthcare
• Vocational training

Headquarters

HQ city

Milan

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations (One-time and Recurring): The foundation raises funds from individual donors through its website donation portal, offering one-time, monthly, quarterly, and annual giving options. Donation tiers are clearly defined (€12, €39, €77) with specific impact descriptions for each amount. This is the primary revenue stream.
2. Distance Sponsorship (Sostegno a Distanza): Digital sponsorship program allowing donors to support specific children at the Bishop Cipriano Kihangire school. Sponsors receive updates via the Praise web platform including photos, videos, and report cards, and can communicate directly with sponsored children.
3. Corporate Partnerships and Philanthropy: Companies support the foundation through liberal donations, in-kind contributions of goods and services, co-design of projects, cause-related marketing, and field visits. Corporate donations are deductible up to 10% of declared income under Italian law.
4. Legacy Bequests: Individuals can include the foundation in their wills, ensuring the continuation of Father Giovanni Scalabrini's work. The foundation promotes legacy giving as a long-term sustainability mechanism.
5. 5x1000 (Italian Tax Donation): Italian taxpayers can direct 5x1000 of their income tax to the foundation by signing on their tax return, providing a passive funding stream from Italian taxpayers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

Fondazione Italia Uganda is an Italian nonprofit foundation that funds and directly operates humanitarian programs in Uganda through four intervention areas: Education (Bishop Cipriano Kihangire schools, feeding programs), Health (Benedict Medical Centre, maternal care, mobile Community Outreach), Vocational Training and Employment (14 workshops, Father John Scalabrini Vocational Institute), and Community programs (emergency relief, urban farming, water access). The foundation also operates the Praise digital sponsorship platform that connects donors with sponsored children.

Product overview

Fondazione Italia Uganda is a non-profit charitable foundation that operates as a portfolio of humanitarian programs rather than a unified tech product. The organization offers four main intervention areas: Education (school support, feeding programs, infrastructure), Health (Benedict Medical Centre, maternal care, Community Outreach), Vocational Training (14 workshops, Father John Scalabrini Vocational Institute), and Community (emergency relief, urban farming, water access). Additionally, Praise serves as a dedicated digital sponsorship platform enabling donors to sponsor children and track their progress through photos, videos, and direct communication.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Praise: A dedicated sponsorship web platform that keeps sponsors updated with news about children from the Bishop Cipriano Kihangire school in Uganda.

Products and services

• Praise Digital Sponsorship Platform
• Education Programs
• Health Programs
• Father John Scalabrini Vocational Institute
• Vocational Workshops (14 Workshops)
• Diventare Mamma in Uganda (Becoming a Mother in Uganda)
• Community Outreach Medical Program
• Semi di Speranza (Seeds of Hope)
• Peacefeeding
• Emergency Fund
• Carehomes Support
• L'Acqua è Vita, L'Acqua è Speranza (Water is Life, Water is Hope)

Quantifiable outcome

• 1,142 mothers supported from pregnancy through early infancy since 2019 under 'Diventare mamma in Uganda'
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers7 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

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fondazione MilancoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partnership since 2022 focused on sports-for-change education. Enhanced sports equipment and training for football teams at BCK schools; provided 32 professional training sessions for local PE teachers; established the first Girl Football Club with 92 girls; supports the 'Fairplay' inclusion-through-sport program.
• Fondazione MediolanumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership since 2021 supporting educational projects including construction of a refectory at Bishop Cipriano Kihangire Primary School and the Peacefeeding program providing meals to 2,237 children at 4 of Uganda's most vulnerable schools. Fondazione Mediolanum also matched donations (doubled) for the Side View Primary School fire reconstruction.
• Fondazione MusekecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership since 2021 supporting healthcare initiatives. Provided medical care to over 200 Covid-positive patients at Benedict Medical Centre and assisted 250 pregnant women in Kampala slums with prenatal examinations, specific care, and accompaniment through delivery and early infancy.
• Fondazione LavazzacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Partnership active since 2020 focused on food security for Kampala's slum populations. Has distributed over 170,000 meals to vulnerable people and supported the 'Semi di Speranza' urban farming project which reached 530 families (3,100+ people) in 2023. Fondazione Lavazza staff have visited the field in Uganda to witness the impact of joint projects.
• Kenya Utalii CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Collaboration for the development of the Father John Scalabrini Vocational Institute. Kenya Utalii College, the most important and prestigious hospitality school in East Africa, provides curriculum design and academic expertise for the institute's tourism and hospitality programs.
• Mission BambiniminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Collaboration for the medical evacuation and treatment of critically ill children. Mission Bambini's experience in treating congenital heart conditions was instrumental in arranging life-saving surgery in Italy for Happy Poline, a Ugandan infant with a serious heart condition.
• Dott. Tito Squillaci (Kalongo Hospital)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Italian doctor at Kalongo Hospital who initiated the medical evacuation process for critically ill children referred by the foundation, coordinating with Italian hospitals for advanced medical care.
• Ospedale Niguarda (Milan)minorOthers · 1 January 2019Milan hospital that received and treated Ugandan children requiring specialized cardiac surgery, collaborating with Mission Bambini and the foundation for international medical referrals.
• Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (CeSI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2009Long-standing partnership since 2009 for the Charity Work Program, which has facilitated 274 scholarships (3-8 weeks each) for UCSC students to volunteer at the foundation's Benedict Medical Centre (since 2009) and Bishop Cipriano Kihangire School (since 2017). Also partner in AICS-funded Community Outreach program (since 2021).

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Fondazione Cesvi: Italian nonprofit foundation headquartered in Bergamo operating humanitarian and development programs globally, including in East Africa. Comparable mission, Italian tax-advantaged fundraising model, and multi-sector (health, food security, education) program portfolio.
• ActionAid Italia: Italian affiliate of a global anti-poverty federation running women's rights, education, and emergency programs in multiple African countries including Uganda. Comparable as an Italian-headquartered nonprofit with similar community-empowerment mission and donor base.
• Fondazione Museke: Italian nonprofit foundation actively partnering with Fondazione Italia Uganda since 2021 on healthcare programs in Kampala slums. Highly comparable in mission (healthcare in Uganda), size, Italian-donor funding base, and field operating model.
• Fondazione Coopi: Italian international development NGO operating across multiple African and Latin American countries. Comparable as an Italian-founded nonprofit implementing multi-sector development projects with similar funding channels.
• Fondazione CUAMM Medici con l'Africa: Italian NGO focused on healthcare in sub-Saharan Africa with a comparable Italian-foundation structure funding directly operated health facilities. Highly comparable in mission (health-focused international development), funding model (Italian donors and institutional grants), and field operations model.
• Fondazione AVSI: Major Italian NGO implementing education, health, and community development programs across developing countries. Comparable as an Italian-headquartered, faith-inspired foundation operating own structures in the field with diversified individual and corporate donor base.
• Fondazione WeWorld: Italian NGO (formerly GVC) running child-protection, education, and community programs in multiple developing countries. Comparable in mission, Italian donor base, and project-based operating model serving vulnerable children and communities.

Broad incumbents

• AMREF Health Africa: Largest Africa-based health NGO, headquartered in Nairobi, operating community health, maternal health, and training programs across East Africa including Uganda. Comparable on health focus and East African geography, but at meaningfully larger scale.
• Medici Senza Frontiere (MSF Italy): Italian branch of Doctors Without Borders, operating medical programs globally including in Uganda. Comparable on health-program delivery in low-resource settings and Italian donor base, but operates at much greater scale and on emergency-response mandate.
• Save the Children Italia: Italian affiliate of a global child-rights organization running education, health, and child-protection programs in Uganda. Overlaps directly on the child-education and child-welfare mission in the same geography, but at substantially larger scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCcDOu5-kW_KdRkx00KJCI3A
• Facebookfacebook.com/fondazioneitaliauganda
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fondazione-italia-uganda
• Instagraminstagram.com/fondazioneitaliaugandaonlus

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 Fondazione Italia Uganda