Helpific – A peer-to-peer-based ICT tool
Estonia
Organisation that has implemented good practice: Helpific
Type of organisation: social enterprise
Level: international
Target group: people with disabilities
Aim: To connect people with disabilities who need assistance with local volunteers and paid support.
Description:
Even though Helpific was developed in Estonia, since 2014 it has been implemented in Croatia, Hungary, Ukraine and Estonia. Helpific is a combination of start-up company and NGO that uses an online research platform within the marketplace, where people with disabilities can ask for help or support in the fields of household tasks, transportation, personal assistance or simply an accompaniment. This target group usually struggles to form an independent life in their community due to the lack of resources and support. Therefore, this project is a place where demand is matched with the willingness to help. After the registration, people can either offer their services or ask for help and the platform helps the users to get into direct contact with each-others. The registration and posting requests are free of charge, but the users requesting help can offer a small amount to be paid. Approximately 41% of users prefer to pay for the service they receive. The project has received funding from the EU program Horizon 2020 and other grants from the public organizations or private sectors. However, it plans to sustain by applying a 10% commission on the derived income from the professional help services in the long run.
