african students' education fund

What african students' education fund does

African Students' Education Fund (ASEF) is a US-incorporated 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2007 by Erik Schmollinger to identify and fund vulnerable yet academically promising Rwandan secondary school students. The organization currently supports more than 1,300 students across 10-11 Rwandan districts and has produced 2,700+ graduates since inception. It operates with a 12-person team split between the United States and Kigali, Rwanda, and achieved registered International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO) status with the Rwanda Governance Board in 2013, giving it formal standing to deliver programming country-wide.

ASEF's core offering is a full scholarship that covers tuition, uniforms, supplies, and hygiene materials, with fees benchmarked to Rwandan Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) guidelines (approximately 85,000 Rwf tuition plus 7,000 Rwf additional fees and a 30,000 Rwf uniform for S1/S4). Around the scholarship, ASEF runs six recurring programs — New Intake, Advisory Meetings, Supply Distribution, School Visits, Graduate Meetings, and JADF alumni activities — supplemented by an Annual Camping enrichment program that has run since 2018. A prior Coming to Kigali program (2014-2018) was discontinued.

The business model is donation- and grant-funded: ASEF raises capital from US-side donors and channels it into per-student scholarships and program operations in Rwanda, in partnership with the Rwanda Education Board (REB), district-level education authorities, and the JADF alumni forum. Revenue scale is not publicly disclosed, and beneficiary concentration across districts is low; the principal concentration risk is on the donor side rather than the student side.

Name

african students' education fund

Legal name

African Students' Education Fund

Website

https://asefrwanda.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Short description

African Students' Education Fund (ASEF) is a US-incorporated 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides full scholarships—including tuition, uniforms, supplies, and hygiene materials—to vulnerable yet academically bright secondary school students across 10-11 districts in Rwanda, supporting 1,300+ students annually.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Secondary Education Scholarship Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Foundation/NGO & Philanthropic Scholarships (EDAIAOAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Country/Region-Specific Scholarships (Inbound/Outbound) (EDAIAOAC)

Keywords

• Secondary school scholarships
• Student education funding
• Nonprofit education support
• School supply distribution
• Scholarship program management

Headquarters

HQ city

Kigali

HQ country

Rwanda

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: ASEF is a 501(c)3 registered non-profit organization that relies on donations from individuals, organizations, and possibly institutional funders to provide scholarships and educational support to vulnerable Rwandan students.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ASEF provides full secondary school scholarships to vulnerable yet academically bright students in Rwanda, covering 100% of tuition fees, uniforms, school supplies, and hygiene supplies. The scholarship is delivered through structured programs including New Intake (student identification with district authorities), Advisory Meetings (termly reviews), Supply Distribution (annual materials), Graduate Meetings (higher education guidance), and School Visits (monitoring and support), currently serving over 1,300 students across 11 districts.

Product overview

ASEF operates as a non-profit scholarship organization providing a comprehensive support program for vulnerable yet bright secondary school students in Rwanda. The core offering is the ASEF Scholarship Program, which covers tuition fees, uniforms, school supplies, and hygiene products. This is complemented by six support programs: New Intake (student identification and onboarding), Advisory Meetings (termly performance and behavior review), Supply Distribution (annual provision of educational and hygiene materials), Graduate Meetings (AGM - university guidance), JADF Activities (community forum participation), and School Visits (monitoring and support). Two special initiatives—Coming to Kigali (2014-2018) and Annual Camping—provide enrichment activities for top performers. The organization operates across 10 districts in Rwanda.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ASEF Scholarship Program Full scholarships to vulnerable yet bright secondary school students in Rwanda, covering 100% of tuition fees, uniforms, school supplies, and hygiene supplies. The program operates across Northern, Southern, Western, and Eastern Provinces and supports over 1,300 students in 11 districts.
• New Intake Program Program collaborating with district and sector authorities to identify and onboard new vulnerable yet high-performing students entering Senior 1 or Senior 4, in partnership with District Education Officers, Vice Mayors in charge of Social Affairs, Directors of Social Affairs, JADF Officers, and Sector Education Officers.
• Supply Distribution Annual distribution of school and hygiene supplies including notebooks, pens, backpacks, sanitary products, bedding, and toiletries to support students' educational and personal needs across all districts of operation.
• Graduate Meetings (AGM) Annual Graduate Meetings providing guidance sessions to help ASEF graduates navigate higher education opportunities, university applications, and scholarships after completing Senior 6.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,700+ graduates produced since official start, with graduates studying at universities including UR, IPRCs, Kepler, ALU, UGHE, RICA, and international institutions in USA, UK, Germany
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Rwanda Governance Board (RGB)coreOthers · 1 January 2013ASEF operates as an International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO) under the Rwanda Governance Board (RGB), which provides regulatory oversight and legitimacy for operations in Rwanda.
• Government of RwandacoreOthersASEF works in collaboration with government schools and follows MINEDUC guidelines for tuition fees and school allocations. Holds 501(c)3 status in the United States.
• Rwanda Education Board (REB)coreOthersASEF supports students from public schools as assigned by REB school allocations. Selection criteria aligned with national examination results.
• District and Sector AuthoritiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerASEF collaborates with District Education Officers (DEOs), Vice Mayors in charge of Social Affairs, Directors of Social Affairs, JADF Officers, Sector Education Officers, and Sector Executive Secretaries to identify and select vulnerable yet bright students for scholarships.
• JADF (Joint Action Development Forum)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerASEF is a member of JADF, a multi-stakeholder platform comprising representatives from public sector, private sector, and civil society. Participates in Open days, JADF General Assemblies, District Joint planning meetings, and Commission meetings.
• Government Schools in RwandacoreOthersASEF partners with government boarding schools across 11 districts to provide scholarships. Does not support private or public schools outside the REB allocation system.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Camfed: Campaign for Female Education (Camfed) supports secondary and post-secondary education for girls across multiple African countries through scholarships and mentorship. Directly comparable to ASEF in delivering scholarship-based secondary education access in Africa via a non-profit model.
• Educate!: Educate! partners with East African governments (notably Uganda and Rwanda) to deliver skills-based secondary education programs. Highly comparable to ASEF in East African youth education focus and government partnership model.
• Building Tomorrow: Building Tomorrow funds and supports secondary education access for vulnerable students in Uganda through community-led scholarship programs. Closely matches ASEF's model of secondary school scholarships for vulnerable children in East Africa.

Broad incumbents

• Room to Read: Room to Read operates globally across literacy and girls' education programs including secondary school scholarships in Africa and Asia. A larger, more established peer in the same philanthropic education space as ASEF.
• Mastercard Foundation: The Mastercard Foundation is a major funder of secondary and tertiary education across Africa through its Scholars Program and related initiatives. It is a broad incumbent operating at much greater scale than ASEF in the African education funding space.
• Segal Family Foundation: Segal Family Foundation is a US-based philanthropic foundation that funds African social enterprises and education initiatives including scholarships. A broader incumbent in the African education funding ecosystem.
• Concern Worldwide: Concern Worldwide is a large international NGO that funds and operates education programs in multiple African countries, including secondary school access. Overlaps with ASEF in the African education/social services space at greater scale.
• BRAC: BRAC is one of the world's largest non-governmental organizations and operates extensive education programs across multiple African and Asian countries. Comparable as a broad education-focused non-profit incumbent in developing markets.

Regional players

• African Leadership University: African Leadership University (ALU) is a Kigali-headquartered higher education institution named as an ASEF alumni destination. While tertiary-focused, it operates in the same Rwanda education ecosystem.
• Kepler: Kepler is a Kigali-based higher education program named as an ASEF alumni destination. It operates in the same Rwanda education sector focused on affordable tertiary education pathways.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/ASEFRwanda

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 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 african students' education fund