Volunteers for Humanity

What Volunteers for Humanity does

Volunteers for Humanity is a Canadian Registered Charity (Business Number 716706700RR0001, website volunteersforhumanity.ca) operating humanitarian programs in rural Uganda. Founded in 2011 with the establishment of an orphanage in Kampala — a large donated home converted into a compound housing 60 orphan girls aged 7-21 — the organization formalised its Canadian volunteer team in 2017, consisting of four dedicated volunteers and two opticians with over twenty years of experience. A minimum of three volunteers travel bi-annually to Africa at their own expense to conduct eye camps and oversee charitable activities. Operations are run in Uganda by two full-time staff members alongside twelve regional volunteers.

The organization's core service portfolio comprises five programs: (1) Eye Camps — annual three-day vision care camps serving up to 1,000 patients per camp, offering eye exams, prescription glasses ($20), eye drops ($3), optometrist day-rates ($100), and cataract surgery ($230 per eye), with a full 3-day camp costing approximately $10,000; (2) Orphanages — shelter, food, clothing, healthcare, primary and secondary education, and college sponsorship ($1,000 annual care per orphan girl; $2,500 higher-education cost) for 60 resident girls plus daily meal support to 360 additional orphans; (3) Wells — installation of deep water wells ($3,500 per well) using a self-owned deep drilling rig (~$100,000 capital asset), with 10 wells installed to date in villages without clean drinking water access; (4) Food, Clothing & Shoes Distribution — meals ($1/meal), shoes ($3/pair), and donated clothing, with cumulative impact of 3,000 children fed, 2,000 pairs of shoes distributed, and 22,000 lbs of clothes distributed; and (5) Nusifah's Education Fund — a dedicated scholarship campaign supporting a sponsored orphan's University of Toronto LLM tuition ($54,367 goal).

The business model is a direct-to-consumer charity relying on individual donor contributions. Donations are collected through the website donation portal at preset tiers of $50, $100, $250, $500, and $1,000 (custom amounts accepted), with options for one-time or monthly recurring billing, and through Interac e-Transfer to [email protected]. Canadian tax receipts are issued for donations of $25 or above, and the organization publicly claims that 100% of donations go directly to beneficiaries. Donor acquisition is driven by digital storytelling via the website, beneficiary narrative content (Mama Makena, Jabari, Nia, Nusifah), photo galleries, and an email newsletter. No financial figures are publicly disclosed; the organization operates without disclosed institutional donors, parent entities, or grant funding.

Name

Volunteers for Humanity

Legal name

Volunteers for Humanity

Website

https://volunteersforhumanity.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Volunteers for Humanity is a Canadian registered charity that delivers eye camps, orphan care, deep water wells, and food and clothing distribution to underprivileged communities in rural Uganda, supported by individual donor contributions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian Aid Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Community Housing Services (62422), Community Food Services (62421)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Medical Missions & Global Health NGOs (BPAGACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disaster Relief & Humanitarian Aid Volunteering (EDAIAGAF), Humanitarian Health & Emergency Medical Relief NGOs (HLAJAKAE)

Keywords

• Humanitarian aid services
• Vision care programs
• Orphan care services
• Clean water initiatives
• Registered charity donations

Headquarters

HQ city

Not specified

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations: Individual donors contribute one-time or recurring (monthly) donations via website. E-transfer donations accepted at [email protected]. Canadian tax receipts provided for donations over $25. 100% of donations go directly to beneficiaries.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Volunteers for Humanity is a Canadian Registered Charity that delivers humanitarian aid programs in rural Uganda, including three-day vision care camps providing exams, glasses, eye drops, and cataract surgeries for up to 1,000 patients per camp; an orphanage in Kampala housing 60 orphan girls with daily meals for an additional 360 orphans; deep well installation using an owned drilling rig to bring clean drinking water to remote villages; and food, clothing, and shoes distribution to families during humanitarian operations.

Product overview

Volunteers for Humanity is a Canadian Registered Charity (716706700RR0001) offering a portfolio of humanitarian aid services focused on Uganda. The organization operates five core programs: Eye Camps providing vision care and cataract surgeries; Orphanages housing and educating 60 girls with daily support extended to 360 additional orphans; Wells installation using a proprietary drilling rig; Food, Clothing & Shoes distribution during operations; and an Education Fund supporting orphans through higher education. These services are offered as distinct but interconnected humanitarian programs rather than a unified technology product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Eye Camps

Quantifiable outcome

• 1000 patients checked and treated per 3-day eye camp
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Sightsavers: International NGO delivering eye care (including cataract surgery) and neglected tropical disease treatment in low-income countries, primarily in Africa and Asia. Closely comparable mission to Volunteers for Humanity's rural Uganda eye camps, with similar volunteer-supported field delivery and individual-donor fundraising model.
• WaterAid: International nonprofit focused on clean water, sanitation, and hygiene in low-income countries including Uganda. Comparable WASH mission and operating geography, though at a substantially larger institutional scale.
• Orbis International: Global eye health NGO that trains local partners and runs surgical programs in low- and middle-income countries. Direct overlap with Volunteers for Humanity's vision-care mission and rural Uganda delivery footprint.
• charity: water: Nonprofit funding clean water access projects (including well drilling) in developing countries, with strong digital donor-acquisition and 100%-transparency branding. Directly comparable to Volunteers for Humanity's well program and donor-messaging approach.
• Operation Eyesight Universal: Canada-based international eye health NGO working to prevent blindness (especially cataracts) in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Strongly comparable as a fellow Canadian registered charity focused on cataract surgery and rural vision care delivery.
• Compassion International: Faith-inspired child sponsorship NGO providing education, food, and healthcare to children in poverty worldwide, including East Africa. Comparable child-sponsorship and education-through-higher-education model, with overlapping Uganda footprint.
• Food for the Hungry: Christian relief and development NGO implementing child sponsorship, food security, and community development programs in Uganda and other low-income countries. Comparable multi-program model combining food aid, child welfare, and rural development.
• SOS Children's Villages: Global NGO operating residential care villages for orphaned and abandoned children. Direct comparability to Volunteers for Humanity's Kampala orphanage program serving 60 orphan girls aged 7-21.
• Helen Keller International: Global health nonprofit addressing preventable vision loss, malnutrition, and neglected tropical diseases across Africa and Asia. Strong overlap with Volunteers for Humanity's vision-care and basic-needs programming.
• Right To Play: International NGO using sport and play to support children's education and well-being in low-income countries, with operations in East Africa. Comparable international-development NGO model serving vulnerable children in overlapping Ugandan geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Volunteers for Humanity