Privacy Policy

Who We Are

Ghana Diaspora SA (GDSA) is a Non Profit Company registered in South Africa (Reg: 2020/003516/08). Our registered address is 42 Hennie Alberts Street, Brackenhurst, Alberton, Gauteng, 1448. You can contact us at info@ghanadiasporasa.org or via WhatsApp on +27 11 867 2550.

As a responsible party under the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA), we are committed to protecting the personal information of everyone who interacts with us.

What Information We Collect and Why

We only collect information that is necessary to provide our services or process your request.

Contact form (/contact)

We collect your name, email address, phone or WhatsApp number, and your message. We use this to respond to your enquiry. We do not use contact form submissions for marketing without your separate consent.

Membership registration (/membership)

We collect your full name, email address, phone or WhatsApp number, nationality, residential area (Gauteng), and membership tier selection. We use this to process your membership application, contact you with payment instructions, and keep a record of GDSA members. We may use your email to send you the monthly GDSA newsletter and event invitations as part of your membership.

Donation form (/donate)

We collect your first name, last name, and email address before redirecting you to PayFast for payment processing. GDSA does not store or process your card, bank, or payment details. Payment is handled entirely by PayFast, subject to their own privacy policy.

WhatsApp

When you contact us via WhatsApp (+27 11 867 2550), we may retain your name and message for community support and follow-up purposes. We do not add you to broadcast lists without your consent.

Email

When you email us at info@ghanadiasporasa.org, we retain correspondence for organisational and support records.

Website

Our website is hosted on Vercel and managed through Cloudflare. Standard server logs (including IP address, browser type, and pages visited) may be collected automatically by these platforms. We also use Microsoft Clarity to understand how visitors interact with our site. Clarity does not collect personally identifiable information in a form we can link back to individual visitors.

How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information to:

• Respond to your support requests and enquiries
• Process membership applications and renewals
• Facilitate donations and issue acknowledgements
• Send you the GDSA newsletter and event invitations (members only)
• Comply with our legal obligations as a registered NPC

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to any third party. We do not use your information for automated decision-making or profiling.

Who We Share Your Information With

We share personal information only where necessary:

PayFast (payment processing for donations): PayFast is an authorised South African payment service provider. They receive your name and email when you are redirected to their platform.

Google Workspace (email and file storage): Our organisational email and documents are hosted on Google Workspace. Emails you send to info@ghanadiasporasa.org are stored there.

Vercel and Cloudflare (website hosting and delivery): These platforms may log standard technical data as part of normal website operation.

We do not share your information with government authorities unless we are legally required to do so.

How Long We Keep Your Information

• Contact form messages: retained for up to 24 months, then deleted.
• Membership records: retained for the duration of your membership and up to 3 years after it ends.
• Donation records: retained for 5 years to comply with financial reporting requirements.
• Email correspondence: retained for up to 3 years.

Your Rights Under POPIA

You have the right to:

• Ask us what personal information we hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate information
• Request deletion of your information (where we are not legally required to retain it)
• Object to us processing your information
• Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa (inforeg.org.za)

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@ghanadiasporasa.org. We will respond within 30 days.

Security

We take reasonable steps to protect your personal information from unauthorised access, loss, or misuse. Our email is hosted on Google Workspace with two-factor authentication enabled. Our website uses HTTPS enforced by Cloudflare. No system is completely secure. If you believe your information has been compromised, please contact us immediately.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The “last updated” date at the top of this page will reflect any changes. Continued use of our website or services after a change constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

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