Privacy and Data Protection Policy

JOINED-HANDS INITIATIVE FOUNDATION LBG (JHIF) Privacy & Data Protection Notice

Effective Date: January 2026     Last Updated: February 2026 

Joined-Hands Initiative Foundation LBG (“JHIF,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) respects and values your privacy. We are committed to protecting personal data in accordance with Ghana’s Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843). This Notice describes how we collect, process, store, disclose and safeguard personal data. It also describes your rights as a Data Subject.

1. Legal basis for processing personal data.

Personal data will be processed lawfully, fairly and in accordance with Act 843 based on:

• your consent;
• the performance of a contract (e.g., processing donations, volunteer agreements);
• to comply with our legal obligations; or
• our legitimate interests in performing our humanitarian functions which are consistent with your reasonable expectations.

We will collect personal data for specific, explicit and lawful purposes.

2. Types of personal data we collect

We collect only the personal data necessary to support our work and programs.

A. Donor Information

Full name

Email address

Phone number

Postal address

Payment information (Sent securely to third party providers for processing)

Donation History

Purpose: To process donations, send receipts; communicate with donors and provide financial reporting. 

B. Volunteer & Beneficiary Information

Name

Contact Information

Skills, References (Volunteers Only)

Limited Demographic Data * (to fulfil program requirements)

Purpose: Coordinate programs and initiatives, share impact reports, comply with safeguarding policies. 

C. Website & Technical Information

IP Address

Browser Type

Device Used

Website Use Logs

Purpose: Improve website performance, prevent fraud and for analytics purposes. 

D. Event Participation

Registration Information

Emergency Contact Information

Purpose: Coordinate events and information about attendees for planning and safety purposes. 

We do not collect excessive or unrelated personal data.

3. Data Protection Principles

JHIF complies with Act 843. Our collection and use of personal information is based on the following data protection principles:

• Accountability We are accountable for personal data we handle.
• Lawfulness & Transparency We only process data fairly and we are open about how we do it.
• Purpose Specification We collect data for specified and lawful purposes.
• Data Minimization We only collect necessary data.
• Accuracy We will take reasonable steps to ensure the accuracy of data.
• Security We have appropriate security measures in place to protect data.
• Data Subject Participation You have rights under Act 843.

4. Disclosure of Personal Data

We do not sell or rent personal data.

We may disclose personal data:

A. To Service Providers

to provide services such as:

• Secure payment processing
• IT hosting
• Email delivery
• Audit and accounting services.

Service providers must maintain confidentiality and comply with standards for data security.

B. To Comply With The Law

Disclosure may be necessary to comply with laws or regulations in Ghana (including by a court or regulatory authority).

C. With Consent

Where we have asked for consent to share data with partners or sponsors then we may do so.

We will not share any data collected through text message opt-in with any third parties.

5. Transfers of Personal Data Outside Ghana

If we transfer personal data outside Ghana (for example, to a cloud service provider) we will take steps to ensure that:

• the country has adequate levels of data protection; or
• suitable safeguards are in place, in accordance with Act 843.

6. Retention of Personal Data

We retain personal data only as long as necessary to:

• Achieve our organizational purpose(s);
• Comply with our legal, tax and reporting obligations; and
• Investigate disputes or enforce our agreements.

Records of donations may be kept in accordance with GRA record keeping policies. 

7. Cookies & Online Tracking

Our website may use cookies to improve and personalize your experience, analyze the use of our websites and help us improve our services. You may reject cookies by changing your browser settings, however you may not be able to use some website features if you do this.

8. Safeguarding Personal Data

We have implemented safeguards appropriate to the nature of the information we process to protect personal data, such as:

• Encrypting transmissions using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)/TLS technology

• Limiting who can access personal data
• Secure payment systems
• Continuous monitoring of our IT systems
• Administrative confidentiality and information security policies.

Security risk can never be fully eliminated.

9. Your Rights Under Ghana’s Data Protection Act (Act 843)

You have the following rights under Act 843:

• Request access to your personal data.
• Request correction of your personal data.
• Object to processing which is likely to cause you damage or distress.
• Object to processing for direct marketing purposes.
• Request deletion of personal data.
• Request compensation if your personal data has been misused.
• Complain to the Data Protection Commission of Ghana.

10. How to Exercise Your Rights

You can exercise your rights by contacting us at:

📧 info@joinedhandsinitiative.org

📍 Techiman, Bono East Region, Ghana.

We reserve the right to verify your identity before responding to your request. Complaints can also be filed with the Data Protection Commission of Ghana.

11. Children’s Personal Data

In the event that JHIF collects information from children while conducting community programs, we will:

• Provide notice to parents/guardians and obtain their consent to participate.
• Only request the information necessary from parents/guardians.
• Take extra precautions with children’s data and confidentiality.

Protecting children is part of our mission.

12. Updates To This Policy

This Privacy & Data Protection Notice may be updated from time to time to reflect legal and operational changes. You can review any updates by checking our website.