Caritas Africa

What Caritas Africa does

Caritas Africa (also branded as SECAF — Secrétariat Exécutif Régional de Caritas Africa) is the regional coordinating body for the Catholic Church's social ministry in Africa, operating as one of the seven regions of the Caritas Internationalis confederation (162 members globally). Headquartered at 735 Boulevard des Armées, Tokoin Séminaire, Lomé, Togo, the organization was officially constituted on 20 January 1995 at Matola, Mozambique, after approval of its first Statutes by Member Organizations. It functions as a federation of 46 national Caritas organizations across 46 African countries, including adjacent Atlantic and Indian Ocean islands, providing humanitarian response, integral human development programming, and social justice advocacy to vulnerable populations.

Its core programmatic products include the K-HUB knowledge management platform (linking member organizations through Knowledge HUB, DGroups, KM4change, and online community spaces), the Programme APPROCHE (A2P-DIRO) organizational strengthening initiative — whose Phase 3 (2019-2023) targeted 17 countries, 202 diocesan Caritas organizations, and 40+ million vulnerable persons with a €2,500,000 budget — humanitarian response services, and long-term development programming spanning social justice, food security, health, and environmental management. Underlying technology comprises Microsoft 365 (with a 2026 managed-services transition RFP), KoboToolbox for field data collection, MS Project for program management, and the TOMATE software suite (TOM²PRO for financial management, TOM²PAIE for payroll, TOM²GRH for HR, and TOM²ETATSFINANCIERS for financial statement reporting). IT governance is being formalized through an IT Systems Strengthening Policy developed in 2025.

The revenue model is exclusively charitable: donations and grants from individuals, Catholic institutional donors (CRS, MISEREOR, CAFOD, SCIAF, Trocaire, Secours Catholique Caritas France, Caritas Belgique, Caritas Espagne, Caritas Coree, Caritas Norvège, Italian Bishops' Conference), and development agencies (AFD). Distribution flows through a hierarchical channel structure — regional secretariat → 46 national Caritas member organizations → 202 diocesan Caritas offices → parish-level operations — reaching beneficiaries across sub-Saharan Africa and adjacent island states. The organization does not sell products or services; contact for donations is [email protected].

Name

Caritas Africa

Legal name

Caritas Africa

Website

https://caritas-africa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Caritas Africa is the Catholic Church's regional social ministry body for Africa, coordinating 46 national Caritas organizations across 46 African countries to deliver humanitarian aid, development programming, and social justice support to vulnerable populations, headquartered in Lomé, Togo.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian Aid and Development Services

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

International & Local Implementing NGOs (HLAJAKAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Humanitarian Health & Emergency Medical Relief NGOs (HLAJAKAE), Refugee, IDP & Migration Humanitarian Assistance (BPAGAAAH), Global Health Research, Evidence & Technical Assistance Organizations (HLAJAKAN)

Keywords

• Humanitarian aid coordination
• Development programming services
• Social pastoral ministry
• Organizational strengthening programs
• Charity and social justice

Headquarters

HQ city

Lomé

HQ country

Togo

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Caritas Africa generates revenue primarily through donations from individuals, institutions, and partner organizations. The organization receives funding from Catholic Relief Services (CRS), various European Caritas members (MISEREOR, CAFOD, Trocaire, Caritas Belgique, Caritas Espagne, Caritas Coree, Caritas Norvгеge, Secours Catholique Caritas France), development agencies (AFD), and other institutional donors supporting humanitarian and development programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Caritas Africa is the regional coordination body of the Catholic Church's social pastoral ministry in Africa, coordinating 46 national Caritas member organizations across 46 African countries. It delivers humanitarian response, long-term development programming, and organizational strengthening support to its member organizations and the vulnerable populations they serve, including the poor, migrants, refugees, and those affected by humanitarian crises. The organization operates the K-HUB knowledge management platform and runs the APPROCHE programme for institutional capacity building of national Caritas members.

Product overview

Caritas Africa is a regional network organization (not a technology product company) comprising 46 national Caritas member organizations across 46 African countries. The organization operates as part of Caritas Internationalis confederation and provides humanitarian aid, development programming, and social pastoral coordination services. Its technology offerings include the K-HUB knowledge management platform for internal coordination, the TOMATE software suite (TOM²PRO, TOM²PAIE, TOM²GRH, TOM²ETATSFINANCIERS) for financial and HR management, and is undergoing a transition to Microsoft 365. The flagship APPROCHE programme (A2P-DIRO) provides organizational strengthening support to member Caritas. The organization is primarily service-oriented rather than product-oriented, focusing on charity, justice, humanitarian response, and integral human development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Programme APPROCHE (A2P-DIRO): Accompagnement de Proximité Personnalisé pour le Renforcement Organisationnel et le Changement des Caritas en Afrique subsaharienne - Regional organizational strengthening program for Caritas national members.

Products and services

• K-HUB Knowledge Management Platform Centralized knowledge management platform providing member organizations with access to Knowledge HUB resources, DGroups discussion forums, KM4change materials, and online community spaces for coordination and information sharing.
• Programme APPROCHE (A2P-DIRO) Regional organizational strengthening programme providing personalized accompaniment support to national Caritas members for institutional development and transformational change in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Social Pastoral Ministry Coordination Regional coordination and support for the Catholic Church's social pastoral ministry across Africa, assisting with charitable works, humanitarian response, and integral human development aligned with Church teachings.
• Humanitarian Response Coordination Emergency humanitarian aid coordination and response services for disasters and crises across Africa, delivered through the network of 46 national member organizations.
• Development Programming Services Long-term development programmes addressing social justice, poverty reduction, food security, health, education, and environmental management across African communities.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Caritas InternationaliscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCaritas Africa is one of the 7 regions of Caritas Internationalis confederation (162 members globally). Caritas Internationalis is the parent organization that provides strategic guidance, norms, and coordination for the global Caritas network. Caritas Africa operates under Article 8.1 of Caritas Internationalis Statutes promoting and harmonizing member organization work within the African region.
• Secours Catholique Caritas FrancemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCaritas France (Secours Catholique) collaborates with Caritas Africa through the APPROCHE program and provides directional and advocacy support. Benoit-Xavier Loridon serves as Director of Action and International Advocacy at Caritas France.
• ASKY AirlinesminorOthersASKY Airlines is listed as a partner organization, though the specific nature of the partnership is not detailed.
• Sun24minorOthersSun24 is listed as a partner organization, with the specific nature of partnership not detailed in available sources.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Caritas Europa: Sister regional body of Caritas Internationalis coordinating 49 Caritas member organizations across Europe; most directly comparable peer as it operates the same regional coordination model, mandate, and confederation governance as Caritas Africa.
• Secours Catholique - Caritas France: French Catholic charitable organization and Caritas Africa strategic partner supporting the APPROCHE program; directly comparable as a national Caritas entity funding international humanitarian programs through African implementing partners.
• Trócaire: Irish Catholic overseas development agency and APPROCHE program co-funder; comparable as a Caritas member organization funding humanitarian and development programming through African partner networks.
• MISEREOR: German Catholic development agency and Caritas Africa co-funder; comparable as a faith-based European funding entity executing international development programs through partner organizations across Africa and other regions.
• CAFOD (Catholic Agency for Overseas Development): UK and Wales official Catholic overseas development agency and a major funder of Caritas Africa; directly comparable as a national Caritas member organization executing international humanitarian and development programs with similar donor profile and mission.
• Catholic Relief Services (CRS): US-based official overseas relief agency of the Catholic Church and a major funder of Caritas Africa; operates parallel humanitarian and development programming globally with comparable mission, donor base, and Catholic institutional identity.

Broad incumbents

• Caritas Internationalis: Global confederation of 162 Catholic charitable organizations of which Caritas Africa is one of 7 regions; directly comparable as the parent body governing Caritas Africa's statutory mandate and providing cross-region strategic coordination.
• Oxfam International: Global humanitarian and development confederation with significant Africa programming across poverty, humanitarian response, and social justice — overlapping mission and continental reach though secular and structurally different.
• World Vision International: Large Christian humanitarian organization operating across Africa with comparable continental footprint, child-focused development programming, and faith-based institutional identity, though broader in scope than Caritas Africa.
• International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) - Africa Region: Global humanitarian network with active Africa regional operations across disaster response, health, and migration — comparable in scale, network-based delivery model, and continental footprint though structurally independent of faith-based affiliation.

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/caritas_africa
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@caritasafrica4979
• Facebookfacebook.com/Caritas-Africa-1450605191827459
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/caritas-africa
• Instagraminstagram.com/caritasafrica

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Caritas Africa