The seeds for Elimu were planted in 2005 during a volunteer posting in Kenya. Their founder first began helping keep kids to stay in school and sponsoring vulnerable girls to a sewing college. The volunteer posting ended in 2006, and making brighter futures for children and youth through education and entrepreneurship became her full-time passion.

Elimu means EDUCATION in Swahili. By 2012, Elimu was a registered Canadian charity with four educational projects, a board of directors in Canada and a small Kenyan team in Malindi, Kenya. Their home for children and Stay in School Project make sure that children at-risk of dropping out get what they need to complete their primary and secondary education. Elimu Sewing Project helps girls from rural communities avoid early forced marriages and achieve independence by starting their own sewing business.

In 2016, Elimu opened the first digital education resource centre in Malindi, which puts textbooks into hands that have never held them. In 2018, the Centre moved from the original one-room facility to a four-storey building which can hold over 250 students at a time and provides separate study spaces for primary and secondary students. The new Centre greatly increases Elimu's impact in the community and opens a realm of possibilities to assist youth after high school with entrepreneurship and employability skills.

The Elimu Team is a group of professionals from a variety of cultural and spiritual backgrounds united by an authentic passion for improving lives by facilitating self-directed learning, especially for those from vulnerable situations. Each of those serving children in Kenya does so from a living Christian faith. Elimu readily serves all faith backgrounds without reserve. All of those involved began as volunteers. Currently all management in Canada is still handled by professionals who volunteer their time and expertise.

Elimu Mission. To provide Kenyan communities access to the education, skills and support they need to realize their full potential.

Elimu Vision. Kenyan children and their families empowered with the confidence, skills and self-awareness to help break the cycle of poverty, instill independence, and build thriving, prosperous communities.