Financial concerns spark probe into aid charity

The Charity Commission has opened an inquiry into the charity Water for Africa amid concerns around its finances.

The regulator is also critical of a failure by the charity’s trustees to “provide adequate assurances or documentation” around its concerns around its financial controls and record keeping.

The trustees had been written to by the Commission setting out its concerns.

Further concerns around “payments to a third party and overseas payments” are also being raised by the Commission.



The inquiry will look at whether trustees are complying with their legal duties, particularly their accounting and reporting responsibilities. Their oversight of charity spending will also be looked at.

“Potential conflicts of interests” with connected individuals and organisations will also be investigated, as will the “trustees plans for the charity’s future”.

Water for Africa launched in 2006 to provide sanitation and healthcare to communities in West Africa.

The Staffordshire based charity last filed its accounts for the year ending June 2020. This showed its spending was £199,440 and its income was £353,340, down £121,660 on the previous year.

    Share Story:

Recent Stories


Beyond the funding squeeze: Using equities to secure your charity’s future
With charities facing increasing financial pressure and traditional income streams under strain, making investments work harder has never been more important. M&G’s Richard Macey and Michael Stiasny join Charity Times to discuss why equities remain a vital long-term asset class for charities, how organisations can balance income generation and growth, and the opportunities the current market environment may offer to help strengthen financial resilience.

Charity Times Awards 2023

Charity Times video Q&A: In conversation with Hilda Hayo, CEO of Dementia UK
Charity Times editor, Lauren Weymouth, is joined by Dementia UK CEO, Hilda Hayo to discuss why the charity receives such high workplace satisfaction results, what a positive working culture looks like and the importance of lived experience among staff. The pair talk about challenges facing the charity, the impact felt by the pandemic and how it's striving to overcome obstacles and continue to be a highly impactful organisation for anybody affected by dementia.