Our Impact
Thirty years of making a difference
Thirty years of giving
In 2021 Vodafone Foundation turns thirty. During this time, we have evolved our Foundations to harness the power of giving and connectivity to change lives, provide help to those who need it, and empower people to realise their potential.
The Foundation was founded in 1991 with a simple mission to invest in the communities in which Vodafone operates. Today, we connect people and ideas with technology and funding, to help those already doing good work to achieve results faster, more cost effectively and with a bigger social impact.
Our goal for 2021 and for the next thirty years is to make every euro we donate, either directly or in-kind, work even harder than ever before. We want our legacy to be measured not just in terms of lives improved, but as an active and accountable partner that builds and scales sustainable, long-term solutions to address some of the world’s most pressing problems.
260,000
refugee students accessing quality education through Instant Network Schools
38%
reduction in maternal mortality through m-mama
1.8 million
supported through Apps Against Abuse
Achieving Greater Equality in Global Philanthropy
We have commissioned new research into the philanthropic evolution needed to better help African-led solutions to scale, in partnership with Vodafone Group PLC’s commercial arms in Africa, Vodacom and Safaricom. Through this investigation, our ambition is to better understand why local African CSOs find it harder to access global donor aid compared to intermediary international based NGOs, and find a fairer way forward for global philanthropy.
Lives improved
We invest in projects that produce meaningful change, at scale and with lasting impact.
241.4 million
lives improved since 2016
71.77 million
direct beneficiaries
169.64 million
indirect beneficiaries
How we measure our impact
We have an ambition to improve 300 million lives by 2025.
Allowing for the broad range of issues and initiatives we invest in, we track one measure of impact, Lives Improved, for all programmes run by Vodafone Foundation (UK registered charity 1193984) and affiliated local Vodafone, Vodacom and Safaricom Foundations. This data is collected in conjunction with detailed monitoring and evaluation of individual programmes.
The Lives Improved methodology was developed in collaboration with KPMG. To find out more about the methodology behind Lives Improved, download our guidance below.
Guidance note - Lives Improved methodology Oct 2018Our work combining Vodafone’s charitable giving and technology to improve people’s lives spans a wide range of uses, including maternal health, domestic violence and refugee education – to name just a few.
The pie chart provides an overview of the issues we invest in and the proportion of Lives Improved accounted for by each.
Keep up-to-date with us
Follow our social channels to get news and updates on the activity and impact we are having across the globe.
