Privacy and Safeguarding
You’re in safe hands.
The privacy and protection of our community, in Canada and in Ethiopia, is vitally important.
We hold ourselves to the highest industry standards to protect your privacy and safeguard the well-being of the people we serve in Ethiopia.
Privacy Policy
Who we are
Ethiopiaid is a registered charity in Canada (Registered charity number: 855016267/RR0001)
This Privacy Policy applies to all the above entities.
Ethiopiaid’s registered address is 404 McArthur Ave, Room 200, K1K 1G8.
This Privacy Policy relates to information which is obtained by Ethiopiaid and for which Ethiopiaid is the Data Controller.
Ethiopiaid’s purpose
Ethiopiaid supports a wide range of partners in Ethiopia ranging from maternal health and opportunities for women and girls to education, disability and the elderly. Ethiopia has made huge strides forward since the devastation and despair of the famines during the 1980s. We continue to drive this progress and development further through our trusted partnerships, ensuring that no one is left behind.
Why we hold and process supporters’ personal data
Ethiopiaid values your support, and we are committed to protecting your privacy. We are sharing this statement with you so that you understand how we manage any information held about your support for and interest in our work.
We process personal information for certain legitimate business purposes which include some or all of the following:
- Where the processing enables us to enhance, modify and personalize our communications for the benefit of our donors and supporters.
- To process donations, legacies and Gift Aid.
- To send out content that our supporters may have a legitimate interest in. For example, updates on our work, how to leave legacy information and emergency appeals.
- To identify and prevent fraud.
- To enhance the security of our network and information systems.
- To better understand how people interact with our websites and social media.
- To provide postal and email communications, including fundraising appeals and campaigns, that we think will be of interest to you.
- To determine the effectiveness of our fundraising appeals and campaigns.
Wherever we process data for these purposes we will ensure that we always keep your Personal Data rights in high regard and take account of these rights.
You have the right to object to this processing if you wish. Please click here to inform us of your objection. Please bear in mind that if you object it may affect our ability to carry out the tasks above for your benefit.
We do not knowingly collect any personal information from anyone under the age of 18 years.
When and why we will send you personalized fundraising and marketing communications
Ethiopiaid will use your personal information in order to send you direct marketing appeals and communications so that we can keep you informed with our news, updates and appeals relating to the charitable projects you have supported, or may have an interest in. We will only send you such marketing and fundraising communications where we have your consent or have determined legitimate interest.
We may use your personal information in order to keep your contact details accurate and up to date. This includes recording your contact preferences (e.g. postal, email or phone), your previous address if you have moved, your philanthropic and charitable interests, and the type of communications you have given your consent to receive.
We will make it easy for you to tell us if you would like to receive marketing communications from us and hear more about our work and the ways in which you would like to receive this information (e.g. by post or email).
Your consent for receiving marketing and fundraising communications lasts until you opt out through email, phone, or response to our messages. Lack of opt-out will be considered as renewed consent, up until a 60 month period at which time you will have to provide your renewed consent.
You can update or withdraw your consent at any time, for individual or all channels of communications. Ethiopiaid will not send you marketing and fundraising materials if you tell us that you do not wish to receive them. Please click here if you would like to be removed from our mailing and email list. Requests to remove details may take up to 28 days to fulfil.
Consent lasting more than 60 months
We will generally treat any marketing consent you give us as lasting for 60 months (about 5 years) but will apply the following exceptions.
- Where you have committed to giving us a regular donation. In this situation, and unless you withdraw your consent, we will treat consent as enduring until you cancel your donation, at which point your consent will expire 60 months after the last donation. This is to enable us to keep you up to date with regular touch points and show the impact of your regular gifts, and to ask whether alternative means of support would be of interest.
- Where you have notified us that you will be leaving a legacy to Ethiopiaid. This is a lifetime commitment and although we will provide you with regular opportunities to shape and control your communications from Ethiopiaid we will treat your consent as ongoing.
- Groups are defined as either a school, community group, religious organisation or corporate company. If one of these groups have given a donation in the last 60 months, we will treat this as consent, which will expire 60 months after the last donation. This is based on giving history and the groups’ position as donors.
Determined legitimate interest
On occasion, Ethiopiaid may send an additional mailing where Legitimate Interest is determined. For example, Emergency Appeals where we feel that all of our supporters, who have an invested interest in the development and success of Ethiopia and its people, have a Legitimate Interest in being informed of emergency situations that may or might occur. In these occurrences we may contact supporters who last engaged with us up to 84 months prior (about 7 years).
Additionally, information on how to leave a legacy to Ethiopiaid. For we believe our long-term supporters have an interest in knowing different ways they can support and invest in Ethiopia’s future. These communications may fall outside our supporters’ communication frequency preferences.
Personal information collected via our website and social media
Ethiopiaid’s website is a safe platform for our supporters to visit and on which to make online donations. All donations made online are securely processed.
When you donate online, we collect your name, contact details, address, and card information to process your donation. Your card information is deleted post-transaction. For monthly donations to Ethiopiaid, your information is securely stored.
We will use the personal information collected to send you an acknowledgement. You can also opt to receive our fundraising communications at a frequency and via a method that suits you.
You can unsubscribe from receiving our communications at any time by clicking the link in our most recent email or by contacting us at [email protected]
Email fundraising appeals
If you have opted in to receive our fundraising appeals and marketing communications by email you will receive these on a regular basis. You can unsubscribe from these emails by clicking the unsubscribe link at any time or by emailing [email protected] with your request.
To enable us to determine which of our email fundraising appeals are more interesting to our users, our emails may contain a single tracking pixel to allow us to see whether emails are opened, and also which links people click the most. The pixel will be removed when you delete the email.
If you do not wish the pixel to be downloaded to your device, please set your email client to receive plain text emails from us.
What personal information might Ethiopiaid collect about you?
We may process your personal information for carefully considered and specific purposes which are in our interests and enable us to enhance our own activities. We believe this will benefit our donors, supporters and ultimately our beneficiaries. These are:
Financial Processing
We will use your personal information to process your donation(s) and ensure that your donation(s) are accurately credited to your record on our database. This may include details such as your name, postal address, email address, telephone or mobile number and your bank account details.
When the Information is Publicly Available
We might also obtain personal data about individuals who may be interested in giving major gifts to charities or organisations like Ethiopiaid. In this scenario, Ethiopiaid may seek to find out more about these individuals, their interests and motivations for giving through publicly available information. This information may include newspaper or other media coverage, open postings on social media sites such as LinkedIn, and data from Companies House. Ethiopiaid will not retain publicly available data relating to individuals without their consent, which will be sought at the earliest practical opportunity.
Personalisation
We may use your personal information to personalise our communications with you to improve your experience with us.
Sensitive Personal Data
We do not collect “sensitive personal data” about our supporters, e.g. health status, unless there is a clear reason for doing so, for example physical challenges and overseas trips where we may need to provide appropriate facilities or support to enable you to participate. Clear notices will be provided on application forms for such activities so that it is clear what information we need and why we need it.
Cookies
Our website uses cookies, small pieces of data stored inside a website browser, across our websites to improve their performance and to enhance your user experience.
When you visit our websites, cookies allow us to collect some non-identifying basic information. This includes the total number of visitors, the pages viewed, and other anonymous information. We use this information to improve our website and optimize our future marketing campaigns.
To find out more about the types of cookies we use and our full Cookie Policy please click here.
Do we share your information?
We may occasionally share names with selected organizations. Our appeals include a pre-checked box to prevent sharing your information. Once you donate and the box is checked, your profile is updated to ensure your information isn’t shared indefinitely, without the need for future updates.
To opt out of information sharing, email your request to [email protected]. Once done, your profile will be updated to ensure no future sharing of your information.
Regular donations made by direct debit, together with donations made by credit or debit card, are processed securely by regulated third-party financial institutions who will only use your personal information for the purpose of processing the transaction(s).
We may also use third-party agencies to help us manage postal mailings, responses to our appeals, keep our data updated and make sure that our fundraising communications are managed as effectively and efficiently as possible. This could include keeping address records correct by screening against public information relating to deceased files or address changes.
Where Legally Required
We will also comply with legal requests where disclosure is required or permitted by law (for example to government bodies for tax purposes or law enforcement agencies for the prevention and detection of crime, subject to such bodies providing us with a relevant request in writing).
How long will Ethiopiaid keep your personal information?
We will hold your personal information on our systems for as long as is necessary for the relevant activity, for example we will keep a record of donation for at least seven years to comply with CRA rules. After 7 years (or 84 months) your information will go through a retention, lapsing, archiving, pseudonymizing and destruction process.
If you have opted out of receiving all of our communications then we will continue to hold some of your personal data for a period of time, however limited, to ensure that no further communications are sent.
Legacy income is vital to the running of the charity. We may keep data you provide to us indefinitely to carry out legacy administration and analysis. We will also keep data that will enable us to communicate effectively with the relatives and executors of individuals who have left a legacy to Ethiopiaid.
Where you contribute material to us, e.g. user generated content or in response to a particular campaign, we will only keep your content for as long as is reasonably required for the purpose(s) for which it was submitted unless otherwise stated at the point of generation.
How do you contact us regarding your information?
If at any time you change your personal information or if any of the other information, we hold is inaccurate or out of date, please contact us as soon as possible at [email protected].
Ethiopiaid have taken extra measures to ensure that your information is protected including but not limited to working in secure cloud networks, restricted database access based on job role, additional staff training and signed confidentiality and intellectual property agreements.
You can send anonymous donations to us at any time. Please bear in mind that without knowing your name and address we will not be able to acknowledge your generosity or provide you with a Tax Receipt.
You have the right to access your data and can request this in writing or verbally. We will respond to your request within one month.
You have the ‘right to be forgotten’ and can request this in writing or verbally. We will respond to your request within one month. Please note that this right is not absolute and does not apply to information that we are legally required to keep, for example donation records in accordance with CRA rules.
If you are not satisfied with how we use your information you have the right to complain. All complaints are treated seriously. Ethiopiaid will acknowledge all complaints within five working days and will conduct a full investigation in order to reach a satisfactory outcome. Ethiopiaid will respond to all complaints as quickly as possible to the satisfaction of all parties concerned.
Safeguarding Policy
We ensure each of our field partners in Ethiopia have rigorous safeguard policies in place to protect the wellbeing of children and vulnerable people, support gender equality and ensure the highest standards in staff code of conduct.
Here is an overview of the safeguarding policies upheld by our partners:
- Child Protection Policy | To protect children from harm, exploitation and abuse and provide the safest possible environment for any children with whom we work.
- Gender Equality Policy | To promote the equal realisation of dignity and human rights for all – girls, women, boys and men.
- HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy | To create a supportive work environment for all staff and volunteers while minimising the prevalence of HIV infection and assisting in lifestyle management for HIV positive employees.
- Code of Conduct | To follow values of community participation, trust, non-discrimination and respect for local values while promoting self-reliance and community participation as we help people and communities seek solutions to the challenges they face.
Program & Partner Audits
We perform comprehensive internal audits each year when visiting our partners in Ethiopia and also compile quarterly and annual reports from each of our partners. This ensures the funds we raise are used in a visibly efficient way and that the projects they fund achieve meaningful results.
Find out more about the results we’re achieving and how our funding is used in our Annual Report below.
“From the very start, our core strategic objectives have been founded on ethics, best practice and professional code of conduct. Even as Ethiopiaid has grown into a global organisation with teams across the UK, Canada, Ireland and Australia, I am proud that we have never lost sight of our identity as an ethical, grounded and approachable charity, proudly connecting our supporters to the causes they care about in Ethiopia.”
Sharon Elliott, CEO Ethiopiaid Canada