Help build a South Africa where every child thrives!

The Friends of Thandanani Foundation (FoT)
is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit (EIN: 99-3888888)
dedicated to mobilizing support for the life-changing work of
Thandanani Children’s Foundation in South Africa.

For over 35 years, Thandanani Children’s Foundation has worked to transform the lives of children and youth living in adversity.

Through its various projects, Thandanani works to break cycles of poverty and adversity by creating opportunities for personal growth, enriched family life, improved educational outcomes, and sustainable livelihoods as they build stronger, more vibrant families and communities where children are loved, nurtured and protected, and youth are supported in pursuing their dreams.

To date, Thandanani has:

Supported 18,940 beneficiaries across 3,053 households through its Family Strengthening Programme.

Provided health education to 96,074 community members and has screened and tested 55,730 of these for HIV & TB.

Engaged 815 Caregivers and 1160 children through our Home-Based ECD Programme – Play Mat.

Enabled 53 youth to initiate small businesses for themselves through our micro-enterprise development program – Zenzele (Do it for Yourself)

This is high-impact, community-rooted work, carried out with integrity, empathy, and deep local trust.

Together, we can make a difference.

Friends of Thandanani exists to give caring individuals, organizations and businesses in America a trusted, tax-deductible way to contribute to meaningful, measurable change in the lives of vulnerable children and youth in KwaZulu-Natal.

When you become a Friend of Thandanani, you directly strengthen Thandanani’s work – helping families break cycles of poverty, adversity, and exclusion, and ensuring children grow up safe, healthy, loved, and cared for.

Your Support Matters!

KwaZulu-Natal remains one of the most challenging environments for children & youth in South Africa. In KwaZulu-Natal:

65% of all children live in poverty
23% live in overcrowded households
36% live in households where no adults are employed
11% lack regular meals
65% of youth (20 to 24) are unemployed or discouraged work seekers, and
49% are not in any form of education, employment or training.

Against this backdrop, the work Thandanani does is not just valuable, it is life-changing!

If you grew up in South Africa, have roots there, or your organization has strong ties to the country, you know how much potential exists – and how great the need remains.

By becoming a Friend of Thandanani you will ensure that children are loved, nurtured, and protected, and that youth have a fair chance to pursue their dreams.

Your support will fund: