About Global Development Project
This is why Global Development Project exists. And has, for more than 35 years.
Who We Are
About GDP
Global Development Project (GDP) is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit with operational leadership in Nairobi, Kenya, and headquarters in Jacksonville, Florida. We are not a relief agency that parachutes in — we live alongside Kenya’s most vulnerable communities, building institutions designed to outlast us. Our leadership team has worked together for more than 35 years, a rare continuity that builds deep cultural understanding, long-term local trust, and the kind of institutional knowledge that transforms short-term aid into permanent change. In 2026, the Kenyan government formally recognized GDP as a registered NGO under the name Global Hearts Without Borders Network — a landmark milestone that grants broader access, national legitimacy, and a permanently expanded runway for our mission across East Africa. EIN: 93-1730164 · View our financial reports →Our Mission
“We create lasting social impact by addressing the immediate and long-term needs of disadvantaged women, children, and communities across Kenya and East Africa — through holistic care, education, trauma-informed recovery, clean water, economic empowerment, and community resources — rooted in love, hope, and compassion.”Love & Hope
Compassion drives every decision we make
Empowerment
We train people to become their own leaders
Integrity
Transparent, accountable, and ethically stewarded
Humble Leadership
We serve and listen — never impose
Global Community
Connecting donors and volunteers to Kenya
Our History
35 years of extending love and hope — from a small band of committed people in 1991 to a Candid Platinum-rated institution serving East Africa today.
1991
1990s
Early 2000s
2021
2025
Early April 2026
2026
2027
Our Work
Six interlocking programs — each addressing a different dimension of vulnerability in East Africa’s most underserved communities.
Children’s Homes & Special Care
Three partner homes and a specialized therapy center — providing food, healthcare, education, and trained caregiving for approximately 590 children.
Learn More →St. Rita Evergreen Girls School
East Africa’s first trauma-informed campus for girls fleeing gender-based violence — opened March 2025. Over 2,000 girls remain on the waiting list.
Learn More →Clean Water
Drilling wells, installing solar-powered pumps, and maintaining infrastructure in drought-affected regions — giving 2,000+ people safe daily access to clean water.
Learn More →Women’s Empowerment
5,500+ women annually through trauma recovery, financial literacy, entrepreneurship training, and round-the-clock crisis support.
Learn More →GDP Scholarships
The Evelyn S. Weatherspoon Scholarship Fund — supporting Kenyan students from communities like Nairobi’s Mathare into secondary school, vocational training, and university.
Learn More →Humanitarian Aid & Youth
Crisis response for widows and families in Nairobi’s informal settlements, plus 12 youth leadership centers across Kenya developing the next generation of community leaders.
Learn More →“From feeding programs that doubled attendance at rural schools, to scholarships that sent Mercy from Mathare into medical training — our work is measured in transformed lives. These stories are why we continue to show up, season after season.”
— Michael Wright, Co-founder & Director, Global Development Project · 35 years of service“Some places carry a weight that words struggle to hold — the kind of poverty that is generational, the kind of hopelessness that has been passed down like an inheritance nobody asked for. Those are exactly the places we go. GDP and Global Hearts Without Borders Network don’t measure success by what is easy to photograph or easy to explain. We measure it in the grandmother who finally has clean water, the teenager who now has a trade, the community that looked up one day and realized it no longer needed rescuing. That kind of change doesn’t happen from a distance. It happens because someone showed up, rolled up their sleeves, and refused to leave until something real was built. You made that possible. You still do.”
— Michael Wright, Co-founder & Director, Global Development Project · 35 years of serviceLandmark Milestone · 2026
Kenya officially recognizes GDP as a registered NGO — Global Hearts Without Borders Network.
Kenya Recognizes GDP as a Registered NGO
In 2026, the Kenyan government formally recognized Global Development Project as a registered Non-Governmental Organization — one of the most significant milestones in GDP’s 35-year history. The official recognition comes under the name Global Hearts Without Borders Network, GDP’s sister organization operating directly under the GDP banner.
Nothing changes about GDP’s mission, leadership, or programs. What changes is reach, legitimacy, access — and a permanent declaration that GDP is not a visiting charity. It is officially, nationally, and permanently planted in Kenya.
- Deeper access — official NGO status opens government partnerships, institutional grants, and regional funding streams previously unavailable
- Expanded reach — Global Hearts Without Borders Network allows GDP’s mission to spread further throughout Kenya and all of East Africa
- National legitimacy — the Kenyan government has formally acknowledged GDP as a force for transformation
- Same mission, same team — this recognition does not change GDP’s programs, leadership, or donor relationships
- Village Elder appointment — GDP leaders were formally appointed as Village Elders in Musoli, Western Kenya — the highest community honor
Priority Funding 2026
Five projects. One $770,000 goal. All shovel-ready — funding is the only barrier to breaking ground.
Five Projects. One $770,000 Goal.
100% of your gift goes directly to programs in Kenya · Candid Platinum 2026 verified · Tax-deductible 501(c)(3)
Total priority funding target · 2026
$770,000
Leadership
Many of our leaders have served together for more than 35 years. That continuity — rare in the nonprofit world — is our greatest operational asset.
Michael Wright
Patricia Wright
Yira Hoffmann
Greg Hoffmann
Eric Wright
Edith Jebet
Jocelyne Wright-McLemore
Dr. Erin Anthony
Stories of Hope
Our work, measured in transformed lives. From Mercy in Mathare to the young mother at St. Rita — every program exists because of a real person with a real name.
Accountability
How we earn your trust — transparency is not a policy at GDP. It is a practice, built into every project from day one.
Annual Financial Reports
GDP publishes annual financial reports on this website — open to any donor, partner, or member of the public. We also undergo voluntary third-party audits to verify our financial stewardship. View reports →
Monthly Donor Impact Reports
Every donor who provides an email address receives a monthly impact update — with photos, project progress, and specific outcomes tied to their giving period. You’ll always know what your gift did.
Built-in Sustainability
Every GDP project includes vocational training, income-generating activities, and local partnerships so communities maintain services after initial implementation. We build to last — not to be needed forever.
Support us today at +1-904-370-3675 or email info@gdpkenya.org · Hope Builders →
Our Partners & Reviews
