Donate School Supplies
The Need
2 out of 3 school children in West Africa do not have the needed supplies to support their learning. (Develop Africa informal survey of 5 West African countries).
Thousands of students in sub-Saharan Africa don't have access to school supplies and textbooks.
Providing one textbook to every student in a classroom increases literacy scores by 5-20 percent (Michaelowa and Wechsler (2006)
Without the necessary school supplies, bright young minds lack the quality of education that they need to thrive academically. Too many young people with high potential turn to destructive rather than constructive paths for themselves and their community.
Our Solution
When struggling schools work hard with little available, we step in to help. By offering essential educational tools to schools, we improve access to quality education for the future leaders of African communities.
You can help - donate school supplies today for children in Africa.
Develop Africa started with the simple premise that creating a conduit to source school supplies and distribute them directly to African schools in the greatest need would substantially impact student learning.
Since 2006, we have received supplies from donors from the US, Australia, the UK, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Oceania, Asia, Central and South America etc. These supplies have been distributed directly or through partner organizations to tens of thousands of children in Cameroon, Ghana, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania).
How can you help
1. Donate
- New School supplies: If you have unused supplies at home, school, or work, please send them to us directly.
- Used School Supplies: We welcome gently used supplies of all types. Recycling previously owned school supplies and office items is a great way to help others while being kind to our environment.
- Branded Items: We also accept these donations if you have used or unused branded items.
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Monetary support/funds:
We need your help: Donating towards shipping supplies is the best way that you can help. We welcome your financial donation to cover the cost of shipping. This helps us place the supplies in the kids' hands. We would be very grateful if you could donate at least $50 or more per box to cover the cost of shipping your supplies to Africa.
Donations towards shipping can be sent by check, money order, or online donation.
Please fill out the Drive registration form first. This helps us know when to expect your supplies.
Got questions? Feel free to email us at hello@developafrica.org
Donating School Supplies From The USA/Canada
We welcome donated school supplies at the following address
Develop Africa
1906 Knob Creek Road, Suite 3
Johnson City, TN 37604, USA
Phone: 423-282-0006
Shipping from Europe?
Please visit the following page to learn where and how to send your items.
Shipping Items To Develop Africa From Europe (UK, France, Spain, Germany, Poland etc.)
Got Books, Clothes, And Other Items (NOT School Supplies), and You Live Outside Europe?
Please visit the following linked page to learn how to ship other items from countries globally, such as the USA, Canada, Australia, Singapore, Etc. This excludes Europe. If you live in a country not specifically mentioned, this includes your country/region. Shipping Books, Clothes Etc. From The US, Canada, Australia, Singapore etc.
2. Collect
- Sponsor or start a collection drive: We've received countless donations from collection drives at churches, schools, fraternities, and sororities. We welcome your initiative if you would like to collect and send us school supplies.
Click here for more information about organizing a successful School Supplies Drive.
Are you interested in holding a school supply drive?
What do our schools need?
As you might imagine, our beneficiary schools would greatly appreciate any assistance, but we have listed the most requested items below to help provide guidance. (List of School Supplies (PDF)
- Most Needed Item: Backpack and other book bags
- Most Needed Item: Notebooks & notepads
- Most Needed Items: Pens, Pencils, erasers, and pencil sharpeners
- Solar lights for use by children when studying.
- Rulers (English or metric measurements)
- Chalk
- Colored pencils, crayons, and markers
- Calculators
- Filler paper / loose leaf paper
- Netbooks / Laptops / Kindles / iPads / eReaders
- Pocket dictionaries
- Miscellaneous arts and crafts items
- Science equipment
- Umbrellas & raincoats
- Children's books
- Donate Uniforms, clothes, and shoes- Is your school or business changing logos or uniforms? Do you have a collection of fabulous, gently used clothes or shoes? We will gladly take new or like new clothes.
- Computer mice and mousepads: Got a computer mouse you don't need? We gladly accept new mice and mouse pads.
Ship Your School Supplies at a Reduced Rate - Thanks to a Partnership with The Give Back Box.
We have partnered with the Give Back Box to ensure our donors can ship their school supplies donations for the lowest cost. With our Give Back Box partner page, you can purchase a shipping label for a $20 flat fee. This label will cover a box of supplies up to 40 lbs - shipped to our office in Tennessee.
Note: This fee is subject to change. If you have any issues, please call us at 423-282-0006.
Necessary: Please include your name/group name) and contact information (email, phone number, and address) inside your school supply donation box(es); otherwise, we will not be able to identify and thank you.
Please specify if you would like a tax receipt.
Disclaimer: Develop Africa is not directly affiliated with Give Back Box or its services. While donors may choose to use Give Back Box labels to ship donations to Develop Africa, it is important to note that Develop Africa does not have control over the accuracy or shipping process of boxes utilizing Give Back Box labels. Donors are encouraged to carefully review the terms and conditions provided by Give Back Box and ensure that their donations meet the required guidelines before shipping. Develop Africa is not liable for any issues or discrepancies related to donations shipped using Give Back Box labels.
Send us supplies with ease from Walmart:
We have made it very easy for you to send us school supplies. You can do this easily in a few clicks using your Walmart account. The following link takes you to our "wish list" linked to our mailing address. Walmart will automatically provide our shipping address in the list of available addresses - when you are checking out. Add the items to your cart, checkout, and the supplies will be mailed to us directly. One less thing for you to do. Go there now...Send school supplies from Walmart to Develop Africa.
Walmart.com and Walmart app customers can round up their purchase total to the nearest dollar at checkout and donate their change to Develop Africa. Every penny counts! Sign up today to make Develop Africa your preferred charity.
Please remember to include a gift note when purchasing, or email us at hello@DevelopAfrica.org and let us know you're sending us supplies from our wish list so that we can thank you for your support.
Are you interested in doing more than just running a school supplies drive? Then start Become a Hero - Start a School Group or Organization Partnership. This allows you to work closer with Develop Africa with more formal recognition. It is a great way to join and work with Develop Africa. Learn more and get started ...
General Shipping Guidelines
- Please include a list of all items with a total approximate value (when possible). This information helps us speedily document/sort through supply donations.
- Make sure that all sides of your box are securely taped. Please see this video for more information - https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=dWWfggkwSIc
- Bubble wrap any items that could break during shipping.
- Please include your name, email, and address inside your school supply donation so we can quickly identify and thank our donors. Please specify if you would like a tax receipt. Optional- Send tracking information if applicable.
Check out photo albums from some of our recent school supply distributions.
Success Tall Academy, Freetown, Sierra Leone
Distribution to 5 Schools in Freetown, Sierra Leone
Distribution to 6 Schools in Cameroon
Golden Eagles Christian Academy - Liberia
St Timothy's School, Moshi Tanzania
Distribution to Schools in Cameroon (In Partnership With Spirit of America and The US Army)
Raise money through an online fundraiser.
You can find tips and ideas on ways to raise funds for shipping here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I receive acknowledgment of my supplies donation?
Yes! We are so grateful for all the supplies we receive and sincerely appreciate the time involved in organizing and holding supplies drives or fundraisers for Develop Africa. We are happy to mail you a certificate expressing our appreciation after receiving donations. We are delighted to send you a certificate expressing our gratitude after receiving the contributions. If you want specific names on the certificate, please include a letter with your donation that lists the individual or group/organization name.
How do I donate school/office supplies from Europe / UK?
Please go to https://www.developafrica.org/shipping-items-develop-africa-europe-asia-and-australia for more information.
Should I send you photos of the school supplies I plan to send?
Yes - we would love to receive photos of the supplies. We would love to receive pictures and videos of you and the store drive participants with your collected supplies. You can submit photos or videos through our contact form or email us at hello@developafrica.org.
Do you accept teaching supplies/aids?
Yes, we welcome your donations of teaching aids and supplies.
I want to donate school supplies. Are financial or monetary donations required?
As you realize, Shipping is expensive. Monetary donations for school supplies are not required but welcome as they help us cover the shipping costs. Since books are so much heavier, we kindly request that you enable us to donate $50 to Ship to Africa. You can donate online or send us a check/money order. We cannot do what we do without support from people like you. Every bit helps!
Please note that a monetary donation is required for books.
Are company-branded, corporate promotional items accepted – pens, shirts, notebooks, mouse pads, and bags with a company logo?
Yes, you can donate these items, and they are welcome. We welcome conference or meeting bags, complimentary branded pens or pencils, and pens or pencils with typos. Did your company change its name or phone number recently, and are you no longer giving out items with old information? Then send them to us, and we will put them to good use. Please do not send branded letterheads/envelopes - as these would be useless.
Will I receive a receipt for tax purposes?
Yes - we will happily provide you with a tax receipt for donating items to Develop Africa. Please note that the value of the donated items is up to you. You can optionally provide a purchase receipt (if available). Be sure to ask for one, and we will send this to you.
Can I ship school supplies directly to a school in Africa?
Shipping works differently in many countries. In some countries, a tax is levied/charged for even donated items (or there is a lengthy process to obtain tax exemption). Also, the school will often have to clear the items from the port. They would not be delivered to the school. Imagine a case where the school is 150 miles away from the port. The school will have to send someone to clear the items and cover the cost of shipping the items internally (within the country) to the school.
With this in mind, we prefer to follow through with shipments to ensure delivery at the school. We certainly do not want donated items abandoned at the port or discarded because of some levied fee/cost when they are only 100 miles away from the school.
We typically use a clearing and forwarding shipping agency. These agencies are responsible for delivery to the schools and have done so reliably.
What shipping do you recommend?
We do not have any specific requirements for shipping. We advise that you ship in the most cost effective way for you.
Can I Choose Where The School Supplies I donate Go?
Unfortunately, not yet. We do not support shipping to a specific country or school of your choice. When donated items are mailed to our Tennessee office, they are repacked into larger containers (typically drums) before shipment to Africa. This means your donated items will need to be removed from their original packaging/box and combined with donations from others to ship these items most cost-effectively.
Where are my school supplies going?
We have sent books and supplies to the following countries - Cameroon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania.
Our efforts are currently focused on Sierra Leone.
Top reasons why people collect school supplies and send them to Develop Africa
1. We're a service sorority/fraternity organization or other service-based group involved in or required to complete a general community service project, philanthropy project, passion project, peer leadership project, global leadership project, graduation project, end-of-the-year project, personal interest project, exhibition project, international project, research project, American dream project, award project, senior project or kindness activity and are deeply committed to contributing to society through national outreach and global service.
2. We're celebrating a Birthday, wedding anniversary, holiday (special occasion), Bar Mitzvah, Bat Mitzvah, etc. And we are motivated to make a difference for low-income families in Africa. So, we want to collect supplies, host a drive, or hold a fundraiser to help African children in need.
3. We are learning about the world, global issues, education in Africa, African culture, or learning about countries in Africa as part of a class at school/church/camp/group, etc. And we want to make a difference in the world by promoting education across the globe for underprivileged or less fortunate students.
4. We are engaged in a Girl Scouts Activity or Silver Award, Honor Society activity, Boy Scout Activity, etc., and we want to use our service hours to help create a better world and better, brighter future for those facing challenges getting an education by supporting a good and worthwhile cause.
5. I'm a recent graduate, or it's the end of a school year. We are cleaning out our bags/school containers and have leftover learning supplies we want to donate to a meaningful cause.
6. We're cleaning or clearing our house, downsizing, or moving, and we have excess items we no longer need that we want to put to good use.
7. We're decluttering or reducing possessions. We want to reduce waste in an environmentally friendly way by donating excess items to developing countries deprived of equal education and a greater need for them.
8. We heard that supplies are needed in schools in Africa. And we want to promote educational development by hosting a school supplies drive to support education in Africa.
9. I'm a former teacher and was inspired to donate my unused stationery items, standard school supplies, pencils, pens, and other writing utensils to places of education in underdeveloped countries.
10. We want to change lives by advancing international understanding and education to benefit others and help them become self-sufficient.
11. We are teaching kids the importance of service above self, service to others, and uniting the community by setting up a donation box of goodwill or donation bin for people to drop off items donated to communities in need.
12. During a trip, I visited a school in Africa and wanted to send supplies to empower lives by donating education-based resources to areas affected by economic deterioration.
13. I'm trying to help young adults by raising awareness, raising money, sponsoring a drive, or soliciting donations to reach out to others in need.
14. We are a company that changed our name and logo and want to use a great opportunity for impact by donating supplies with our old name/logo to benefit a good cause.
15. We want to empower girls to change the world by improving education and supporting girls in education through our charity event serving youth and children.
16. Our humanitarian group wants to fight against human rights abuse and alleviate poverty by promoting the right to an education as a fundamental human right through international charities.
17. We are motivated to help educate because of our love for books. This incentivizes us to donate towards educational resources in Africa to benefit early childhood development and children's education.
18. Our African Student Association's donation committee has recently focused on global issues and wants to hold a competition to collect pencils because it is an excellent opportunity for impacting all levels of education.
19. We want to pay it forward and volunteer for a national outreach charity serving a great cause.
20. We understand that African orphans struggle to strive and prosper. We want to help them develop working skills by providing solar lanterns for a good cause.
Shipping trivia/facts
- We do not have a loading dock.
- Our office is on the first floor, and if items are sent on a pallet, we will receive the pallet outside and break it down before bringing the boxes into the storage room.
- We can receive any volume of boxes.
- We receive an average of 10 to 15 boxes every week (excluding large shipments)
- We have received shipments as large as 17 - 20 boxes from one organization in one day.
- We are well known (and liked) by all shipping companies (FedEx, UPS, USPS, DHL, etc.). We imagine they want us because our incoming boxes/pallets generate thousands of dollars of business for them each year.
