Our story began in 2015, when we saw something broken and decided to fix it.
Voluntourism
Volunteering abroad, or “Voluntourism”, has grown in recent years to become one of the most popular trends in travel. From teaching English in Kenya to planting trees in India, millions of people each year look for immersive experiences in which they can give back to the communities they visit.
Diluting Impact
Popularity led to commercialization and the industry became dominated by middlemen selling expensive “volunteering packages”, with most funds going to the middlemen and not the nonprofits themselves. Volunteering abroad became an expensive privilege and heavily diluted the financial and human impact enjoyed by nonprofits on the ground.
Middlemen - Out, Direct Connection - In
GivingWay was initially launched in 2015 as a two-sided marketplace where volunteers and nonprofits in Emerging Markets connect directly. We provided the platform tools and nonprofits managed the entire process, fees, and engagement with volunteers as they saw fit, based on their needs and requirements.
Gaining Momentum
We grew fast and thousands of nonprofits from Africa, Latin America and South East Asia joined our platform. GivingWay became one of the most robust platforms for nonprofits in Emerging Markets.
Fostering Connection
Over the years we formed deep connections with nonprofits on the ground and learnt firsthand about the challenges faced by organizations in these parts of the world. In addition to on-site volunteers, there are many other things nonprofits need help with, especially in connection with raising funds and effectively engaging with donors. Over time our products and services evolved to cater to the specific needs of our partner organizations. We were, for example, one of the pioneers of Online Volunteering, enabling nonprofits to enjoy much-needed digital skills to help them create and sustain their online presence.
It’s a New World
The world has changed and many processes that started in recent years have been accelerated by the global pandemic. From grocery shopping to Zoom Yoga, the world has gone online - and philanthropy is no exception. Entire sectors are adapting rapidly to this new reality and nonprofit organizations, especially in Emerging Markets, understand that having the right online tools and mobile assets are crucial to raise funds and sustain their activities.
Mobile is King
The global village is not just online, it’s on mobile devices. This is especially true for Emerging Markets where Internet usage is far more prominent by smartphones than on desktop. Online donors today are used to sleek payment gateways that work as well, if not better, on their mobile phones. Nonprofit organizations must ensure that all their touchpoints with supporters are mobile friendly and that’s why everything we do here at GivingWay is mobile-first.
GivingWay Today is a one-stop-shop that equips nonprofit organizations in Emerging Markets with the tailored fundraising and volunteer management tools they need to effectively compete in our global digital jungle.
