Charities Aid Foundation Southern Africa (CAFSA) is an independent non-profit organisation (NPC Number: 014-831) (PBO: 930002036) that promotes and facilitates effective giving, volunteering and social investment. 

CAFSA has been represented in South Africa since 1997 and in 2000 became a registered Section 21 not-for-profit and public benefit organisation. While being a wholly South African organisation, the organisation is also a member of the international Global Alliance of the Charities Aid Foundation, headquartered in the United Kingdom (CAF UK). As such, we have access to CAF’s skilled professionals, intellectual capital and value model. CAF UK and the other organisations within CAF International are valued and significant contributors to the operations of CAFSA.

A key individual behind the creation of CAFSA was its founder, the late Eugene Saldanha. Eugene played a pivotal role in strengthening the South African civil society sector:

• He believed in the critical role of the sector in building and maintaining constitutional democracy;
• He set up and led two important NGOs namely the Non-Profit Partnership and then CAF Southern Africa in 1997.
• He was influential in advocating for parliamentary reforms with regard to the enabling environment for civil society organisations, and was a leader in lobbying the government to fulfil its responsibility to the sector.
• In particular, Eugene fought for civil society sustainability through reform of government institutions such as the Lotteries and National Development Agency (NDA).

In honour of our late founder, together with a number of Eugene Saldanha’s friends, colleagues and family members, CAFSA established the Eugene Saldanha Memorial Fund in 2007. The purpose of the Fund is to recognise the leadership role played by Eugene in the sector by advancing the work and values which he prized.