Caritas Africa is a confederation of Catholic social service, international development and humanitarian relief organisations operating across Africa. It is one of the seven regions of Caritas Internationalis.
Caritas Africa refers to both the African network with its 46 member organizations, and its secretariat based in Lomé in Togo. The official languages of the organisation are English, French, and Portuguese.
Work The member organisations of Caritas Africa work to alleviate poverty and provide humanitarian responses in their countries. The regional secretariat is engaged in political advocacy at African and global level, and engages in capacity strengthening of its members.
Membership Caritas Africa has 46 member organisations spanning the sub-Saharan region, encompassing the islands in the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic. Caritas Africa does not extend its coverage to the entirety of the African continent, as Caritas organisations in the Maghreb, Mashriq, and partially the Horn of Africa belong to a distinct region within Caritas Internationalis, specifically Caritas Middle East and North Africa.
The national Caritas organisations are the members of Caritas Africa. In most countries, each national organisation serves as an umbrella for various diocesan Caritas organisations. Diocesan and parish Caritas groups operate locally but are not direct members of Caritas Africa. In addition, Caritas agencies from other regions sometimes run country offices in African countries, such as CAFOD, Caritas Czech Republic, Caritas Switzerland, CRS or Trócaire, which are also not part of Caritas Africa, although mostly the Caritas agencies in the developed world prefer to support development by establishing partnerships with local agencies: for example, Caritas Australia's action in Malawi is delivered through its partnership with the country's Catholic Development Commission (CADECOM),Caritas Australia, Project Compassion helps Memory become a carpenter and role model, published on 28 February 2024, accessed on 8 May 2026 and CAFOD works with Caritas Marsabit as a partner in northern Kenya.CAFOD, Lent Appeal 2025: Spotlight on Marsabit, Kenya, accessed on 14 April 2025
List of member organisations
Country Member organisation Member organisation Established Caritas Angola Caritas de Angola 1957 Caritas Benin Caritas Bénin 1958 Caritas Botswana — 1984 Caritas Burkina Faso Organisation catholique pour le développement et la solidarité (OCADES Caritas Burkina) 1956 Caritas Burundi — 1962 Caritas Cameroon Fondation Caritas Cameroun 1971 Caritas Cape Verde Caritas Caboverdiana 1976 Caritas Central African Republic Caritas Centrafrique 1960 Caritas Chad Caritas Tchad 1986 Caritas Comoros Caritas Comores 1979 Caritas Congo Brazzaville — ? Caritas Congo — 1960 Caritas Côte d'Ivoire — 1955 Caritas Equatorial Guinea ? 1980 Caritas Eritrea Eritrean Catholic Secretariat ? Caritas Ethiopia Ethiopian Catholic Church Social and Development Commission (ECC SDCO) 1965 Caritas Gabon — 1967 Caritas Gambia Catholic Development Office (CaDO) 2001 Caritas Ghana — 1960 Caritas Guinea Organisation Catholique pour la Promotion Humaine (OCPH) / Caritas Guinée 1986 Caritas Guinea-Bissau Caritas Guiné-Bissau 1982 Caritas Kenya — 1973 Caritas Lesotho — 1970 Caritas Liberia — 1990 Caritas Madagascar — 1959 Caritas Malawi Catholic Development Commission in Malawi (CADECOM) 1985 Caritas Mali — 1986 Caritas Mauritius Caritas Île Maurice 1965 Caritas Mozambique Caritas Moçambicana 1977 Caritas Namibia — 1987 Caritas Niger Caritas Développement Niger (CADEV) 1962 Caritas Nigeria Catholic Caritas Foundation of Nigeria (CCFN) 2010 Caritas Rwanda — 1960 Caritas São Tomé and Príncipe Caritas de São Tomé e Príncipe 1981 Caritas Senegal — 1966 Caritas Seychelles — 1975 Caritas Sierra Leone — 1981 Caritas South Africa Siyabhabha Trust Caritas South Africa 1970 Caritas South Sudan — 2011 Caritas Sudan Caritas Sudan / Sudanaid 1972 Caritas Tanzania — 1971 Caritas Togo Organisation de la charité pour un développement intégral (OCDI) / Caritas Togo 1967 Caritas Uganda — 1970 Caritas Zambia — 2001 Caritas Zimbabwe Caritas Zimbabwe / Catholic Development Commission (CADEC) 1972 Caritas Swaziland — 1977
Executive leadership
Presidents 1995–2003: Charles Palmer-Buckle ... 20??-2015: Francisco João Silota 2015–2023: Gabriel Justice Yaw Anokye 2023-now: Msgr. Pierre Cibambo
Regional coordinators 2015–2023: Albert Mashika 2023-now: Lucy Esipila
References
External links