Most NGOs lack digital literacy despite tech boom: Report

A report from Digital for Nonprofits (D4NP) reveals that despite India’s surging digital economy, the country’s nonprofits (NGOs) lag behind significantly, scoring an average digital maturity of just 5 out of 10.

Critically, 83% of Indian nonprofits fail to utilise freely available technology grants, notably Google Ad Grants, leaving millions of rupees in ad credits & potential impact untapped.

The "State of Nonprofits Digitization Report 2025" surveyed and analyzed nonprofits in India across 12 sectors, including women, children, policy & advocacy, education, health, arts, sports, and disaster relief among others. The report outlines the transformative potential of digital tools, emphasizing that organizations achieving advanced digital maturity realize up to 20% higher revenue growth and 30% efficiency gains compared to less digitally adept peers.

D4NP leverages tech grants, digi-marketing and generative AI to make nonprofits self-reliant.

After releasing the report, Abhinav Chetan, founder of D4NP, in a statement emphasised the urgency of the findings: “Digital transformation has become the gateway to exponential impact for nonprofits. We're seeing organizations that embrace digital tools not just grow, but truly transform how they serve their communities. What's most encouraging is that this transformation is within reach for every nonprofit. Our research demonstrates that with the right roadmap and support, any organization can harness digital tools to scale their mission and create lasting change.”

Key findings in the report include only 17% of nonprofits currently utilise free digital advertising grants, effectively forfeiting approximately Rs.1 crore in ad credits per nonprofit annually. A mere 13% provide multilingual digital resources, significantly limiting outreach in a multilingual nation where digital growth increasingly depends on regional-language accessibility.