Shehu Musa Yar'adua Foundation

What Shehu Musa Yar'adua Foundation does

The Shehu Musa Yar'Adua Foundation is a non-partisan, 501(c)(3) equivalent non-profit organization headquartered at One Memorial Drive in the Central Business District of Abuja, Nigeria. Established to honor the legacy of former Vice President Shehu Musa Yar'Adua, the foundation promotes national unity, good governance, and social justice through three programmatic pillars: Social Justice and Equity, Governance and Civic Engagement, and Environmental Sustainability and Resilience. Its work targets Nigerian government institutions, civil society organizations, women and youth, environmental stakeholders, and communities affected by climate change, with the chairman being former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the vice chairman being former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

The foundation operates a portfolio of digital advocacy platforms including Partners United Portal (a knowledge exchange platform for Nigeria's accountability sector), the Gender Justice Whistleblowing Platform (deployed across four partner universities), Corruption Anonymous (CORA), the Content Aggregation System for Elections (CASE, which processed over 2.6 million social media micro-reports during the 2015 elections), the C19 Nigeria pandemic surveillance platform, and the Oil Revenue Tracking Initiative (ORTI). It also produces documentary films such as "Nowhere to Run," "Swallow" (broadcast on 37 local Nigerian TV stations reaching an estimated 25 million viewers), and "After Oil We Flourish," distributed through physical and digital channels including YouTube, podcasts, and a network of broadcast partners. The Yar'Adua Centre in Abuja serves as a physical convening hub with rentable conference facilities, a research library housing Shehu Yar'Adua's personal papers, and exhibition spaces.

The foundation's revenue model is based on institutional grants and charitable contributions rather than commercial sales, with funding anchored by MacArthur Foundation, Ford Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Luminate Group, the European Union, UK DfID, Swiss Development Cooperation, and USAID. A significant share of recent programmatic activity flows through the $25 million West Africa Democracy Fund, a multi-donor initiative co-created with Ford, Luminate, Open Society, and MacArthur. Ancillary revenue is generated through facility rentals at the Yar'Adua Centre (with publicly listed pricing for auditoriums, meeting rooms, and atria) and a public donation portal. The foundation does not publish financial statements, and revenue, headcount, and detailed budget information are not disclosed in available sources.

Name

Shehu Musa Yar'adua Foundation

Legal name

Shehu Musa Yar'Adua Foundation

Website

https://yaraduafoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Shehu Musa Yar'Adua Foundation is a Nigerian non-partisan non-profit that advances national unity, good governance, and social justice through digital advocacy platforms, documentary films, and convening programs targeting government institutions, civil society, and marginalized communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Advocacy and Civic Engagement

NAICS

Human Rights Organizations (813311), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN), Government Accountability, Ethics & Anti-Corruption Advocacy (BPAGAFAN), Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

Keywords

• Policy advocacy
• Democracy programs
• Social justice
• Environmental sustainability
• Governance research

Headquarters

HQ city

Abuja

HQ country

Nigeria

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: The foundation accepts donations through its website platform (apps.yaraduafoundation.org/donate) as a certified 501(c)(3) equivalent non-partisan organization, relying on charitable contributions to fund its programs.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Shehu Musa Yar'Adua Foundation is a non-partisan non-profit organization that promotes democracy, good governance, social justice, and national unity in Nigeria through advocacy programs, documentary productions, policy convenings, and digital platforms for accountability, gender justice, election observation, and climate resilience. It funds this work through charitable contributions and grants from major international foundations, and also operates a research library and rents conference facilities at the Yar'Adua Centre in Abuja.

Product overview

The Shehu Musa Yar'Adua Foundation operates as a non-partisan nonprofit organization focused on democracy, national unity, and social justice in Nigeria. Its technology offerings consist primarily of advocacy platforms and digital tools rather than commercial products. The main platforms include the Partners United Portal (knowledge exchange for accountability), Gender Justice Whistleblowing Platform (for reporting sexual harassment in universities), CASE (Content Aggregation System for Elections), and C19 Nigeria Platform (COVID-19 surveillance). These are complemented by documentary productions on climate and governance topics. The foundation's programs are organized under three Public Policy Initiative pillars: Social Justice and Equity, Governance and Civic Engagement, and Environmental Sustainability and Resilience.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Partners United Portal: A knowledge exchange platform developed to foster and grow a community of practice around Nigeria's accountability sector.
• Gender Justice Platform
• CORA (Corruption Anonymous)
• C19 Nigeria Platform

Products and services

• Partners United Portal A knowledge exchange platform for Nigeria's accountability sector, providing tools and resources to enable accountability partners to tackle societal issues and to galvanize collective action against corruption. Targeted at civil society accountability partners and citizens.
• Gender Justice Whistleblowing Platform A web-based whistleblowing platform for students at partner universities (University of Nigeria Nsukka, Bayero University Kano, University of Lagos, American University of Nigeria Yola) to report sexual harassment or gender-based violence, supported by a coalition led by Education as a Vaccine (EVA).
• Corruption Anonymous (CORA) Whistleblowing Platform A whistleblowing platform for reporting corruption incidents, supporting the foundation's anti-corruption advocacy efforts.
• Content Aggregation System for Elections (CASE) A multi-stakeholder election observation platform that aggregates reports from observers and social media; CASE 2015 retrieved more than 2.6 million micro-reports and 11,000 observer reports, while CASE 2019 supported the upgraded MyINEC mobile app for INEC observer accreditation during the 2019 elections.
• C19 Nigeria Platform An online platform deployed to support national COVID-19 surveillance efforts in Nigeria, used by volunteers to escalate confirmed reports to relevant health authorities and supported seven implementing partners.
• Oil Revenue Tracking Initiative (ORTI) A platform providing factual and credible information on Nigeria's oil resource governance and engaging citizens and stakeholders to promote sustainable policy making.
• Nowhere to Run Documentary Documentary on Nigeria's climate and environmental crisis that connects climate, environmental degradation, and security through the perspectives of affected communities; winner of multiple 2016 film festival awards.
• Swallow Documentary Documentary addressing food security challenges resulting from changing climate, inadequate infrastructure, and traditional agricultural practices; broadcast on 37 local Nigerian television stations in four languages.
• After Oil We Flourish Documentary Documentary exploring the environmental and economic implications of a post-oil future, capturing climate and environmental realities of vulnerable groups in the Niger Delta and advocating for environmental justice.
• Yar'Adua Centre Conference Facility Rentals Conference and event venue rentals at the Yar'Adua Centre in Abuja, including an auditorium, central atrium, pavilion, board room, and meeting rooms with publicly listed pricing.
• Research Library Access Membership-based research library providing access to books, reference materials, and Shehu Yar'Adua's personal papers on governance, development, and Nigerian history.

Quantifiable outcome

• COVID19StopsWithMe campaign reached over 40 million citizens
• +2 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

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

• Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on environmental justice initiatives including the Environmental Justice Initiative, COP28 side event on Nigeria's energy transition, and documentary 'After Oil We Flourish' exploring post-oil future for Niger Delta.
• Education as a Vaccine (EVA)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerCoalition partner supporting the Gender Justice Platform whistleblowing system for university students. Manages incidents reported through the platform at partner institutions including University of Nigeria, Nsukka; Bayero University Kano; University of Lagos; and American University of Nigeria, Yola.
• West Africa Democracy Fund PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner$25M fund over three years by Ford Foundation, Luminate Group, Open Society Foundations, and MacArthur Foundation to strengthen civil society governance role, support inclusive policy reforms, and enhance participation of marginalized groups in West Africa.
• NextierminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner on energy transition roundtable discussions exploring Nigeria's energy transition landscape and inclusive platform design for extractive communities.
• Partners West Africa Nigeria (PWAN)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartnership on women in governance project including training of grassroots organizations and community mediators in Kano State, reaching approximately 6 million people through media campaigns.
• Presidential Task Force on COVID-19majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation served as member of Risk Communication and Community Engagement Committee, contributing to awareness creation and behavioral change across Nigeria during the pandemic.
• Partners United PortalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA knowledge exchange platform developed by the foundation to foster community of practice around Nigeria's accountability sector, providing tools and resources for accountability partners to tackle societal issues.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Open Society Foundations: Global grantmaking network of foundations supporting democracy, civic space and accountability — also a core funder of SMYF. A broad incumbent in the same field, with overlapping mission and overlapping donor-recipient relationship with the foundation.

Direct peers

• International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA): Intergovernmental organization supporting democratic institutions and election integrity worldwide, with active programs in West Africa. Directly comparable to SMYF's election observation (CASE) and democratic-institution strengthening work.
• Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES): German political foundation affiliated with the Social Democrats that funds democracy, social justice and labor programs in West Africa. Comparable peer in funding model, multi-pillar programming, and active presence in Nigeria.
• International Republican Institute (IRI): U.S.-based nonprofit advancing democracy worldwide, with active civic and governance programs in Nigeria. Directly comparable to SMYF in election-related programming, civic engagement, and partnership-driven advocacy model.
• Mo Ibrahim Foundation: Africa-focused foundation that promotes good governance, leadership and public-policy debate, including the Ibrahim Index of African Governance. Comparable peer in mission and geographic focus on African governance and accountability.
• Heinrich Böll Foundation: German political foundation affiliated with the Greens that funds democracy, human rights, gender and environmental sustainability programs globally, with active Africa offices. Comparable peer given its multi-pillar civic engagement model in Nigeria and West Africa.
• Westminster Foundation for Democracy: UK government-funded foundation supporting democratic governance, political participation and civic engagement across Africa and Asia. Comparable peer because it channels donor funds into Nigeria-focused governance and accountability programs, mirroring SMYF's donor-to-grantee pipeline.
• National Endowment for Democracy: U.S.-based grantmaking organization that funds civil society, governance and civic-engagement programs globally, including Nigeria. Highly comparable in mission and funding model to SMYF, operating as a non-profit foundation supporting democracy programs through sub-grants.
• National Democratic Institute (NDI): U.S.-based nonprofit that works with civil society and political actors to strengthen democratic institutions globally, including Nigeria. Closely comparable to SMYF's governance and civic-engagement programming and donor base.
• Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS): German political foundation linked to the CDU that runs governance, civic education and rule-of-law programs across Africa, including Nigeria. Comparable peer because of its political-foundation structure, international donor backing, and democracy programs in West Africa.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/yaraduafoundation
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/ShehuMusaYarAduaFoundation
• Facebookfacebook.com/ShehuMusaYarAduaFoundation

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Shehu Musa Yar'adua Foundation