Data Protection
Principles we hold, not just policies we keep.
Ministers trust us with information few others ever see. This page explains how we protect it, the law we work under and how to exercise your rights.
Why it matters to us
An application to the Foundation can contain a minister’s whole situation: illness, debt, a struggling marriage, a child’s school record. Information like that can wound a ministry if it falls into the wrong hands. Protecting it is not a technical exercise for us. It is part of the care we offer.
The law we follow
We process personal information in line with the Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843) and the guidance of the Data Protection Commission of Ghana. The Act requires organisations that process personal data to register with the Commission, and the Foundation treats that obligation, and the Commission’s guidance, as binding.
Eight principles
Act 843 sets out eight principles for processing personal data. This is how we apply each one:
Accountability
The Foundation takes responsibility for the information it holds, and for the providers who process it on our behalf.
Lawful processing
We process information fairly and lawfully, usually with the consent of the person concerned.
A specific purpose
We collect information for clear, stated purposes, such as assessing an application or sending the weekly letter.
Compatible further use
We do not reuse information for purposes unrelated to why it was given.
Quality
We take care that information is accurate and up to date, and we correct it when asked.
Openness
We tell people plainly what we collect and why, on our forms and in our Privacy Policy.
Security safeguards
We protect information with technical and organisational measures appropriate to its sensitivity.
Participation
We respect people’s right to see, correct and object to the use of their information.
In practice
- Every form on this site asks for consent and explains what the information is for.
- We ask only for what we need. Most forms have only a few required fields.
- Application information is seen only by the people assessing and verifying it.
- Connections to the site are encrypted, and the site is protected by a firewall and malware scanning.
- Forms are screened by a privacy-respecting security check rather than invasive tracking.
- We never publish the names or circumstances of the ministers we support.
Making a request
You may ask to see the information we hold about you, to correct it, to delete it where we no longer need it, or to stop a particular use of it. To make a request:
Write to us
Email [email protected] with “Data request” in the subject line, and tell us what you would like us to do.
We confirm it is you
To protect your information, we may ask you to confirm your identity before we act.
We respond
We will respond without undue delay and within the time the law allows, and explain clearly if there is any part of the request we cannot meet, for example where we must keep a record of a rejected application.
If something goes wrong
If personal information we hold is lost, accessed or disclosed without authority, we will act quickly to contain it, and we will notify the Data Protection Commission and the people affected as the law requires.
Raising a complaint
If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, please tell us first, so we can put it right. You also have the right to complain to the Data Protection Commission of Ghana.