Pharo Foundation

Registered charity 1143152 · since 2011pharofoundation.org·Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda·Updated 29 October 2026

At a glance

$144k

Annual giving, year to 31 December 2025

From filed accounts

Key takeaways

If your work falls under education, safe and affordable water, or employment and productivity, and is in or can show a link to the Horn of Africa, which the foundation names as its priority, this funder is worth considering.
No grant range is published, so ask for an amount you can justify against your own costs rather than a figure you have taken from elsewhere.
No application process is published, so start with a short message to the contact shown on its website or annual report, and expect to frame your request around the foundation's three missions, since it says its grants are tied to approved programmes and initiatives.
Nothing published gives deadlines or timing, so ask the contact about these before you plan around them.
No exclusions are published, so no organisation is ruled out on the published information.

Overview

Pharo Foundation is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1143152).

Pharo Foundation is a registered charity that began as a grant-making organisation, choosing projects according to its founders' personal inclinations and passions. It now describes itself as a mission-driven, impact-oriented organisation that designs, funds and runs economic development programmes across Africa, with a strong focus on job creation. Its three missions are education, access to safe and affordable water, and removing barriers to employment and productivity, and it works in Ethiopia, Somaliland, Rwanda and Kenya. Its annual report shows annual giving of $144,361, and the work is delivered through Pharo Development, which runs programmes on the ground, and Pharo Ventures, which builds and scales profitable businesses.

What they fund

Priority Areas

Pharo Foundation describes itself as a mission-driven, impact-oriented organisation that designs, funds and operates economic development programmes towards a vibrant, productive and self-reliant Africa. Its three missions are education, access to safe and affordable water, and removing health, financial and structural barriers to employment and productivity. It works in the Horn of Africa, implementing programmes in Ethiopia, Somaliland, Rwanda and Kenya. The foundation focuses on context-specific, evidence-informed development solutions, assessing expected benefits against costs where possible and evaluating implementation so findings inform programme design. It seeks systemic, sustainable impact through cooperation with development partners, while its social enterprises support job creation and economic value. It also makes grants and scholarships in support of its charitable objectives, with grants tied to approved programmes and initiatives and scholarships awarded using defined eligibility criteria.

Themes

Education
Safe and affordable water
Employment and productivity

Geographic Focus

Priority: The Horn of Africa.

How to apply

No application process is published in the charity's annual report, its register entry or its website. The contact shown is for getting in touch.

Where they fund

Where it says it funds

Ethiopia
Kenya
Rwanda

Similar funders

Funders supporting work similar to Pharo Foundation.

The Kays FoundationNo public processGave £546k Balloon Ventures FoundationNo public process IcFEM Dreamland MissionRollingGave £378k The One FoundationInvitation onlyGave £2.7M The COSARAF Charitable FoundationMixed deadlinesGave £531k Sumerian FoundationNo public processGave £98,031 Bleu Blanc Rouge FoundationInvitation onlyGave £474k The RWS FoundationInvitation only James Percy FoundationInvitation onlyGave €2.9M CHASE AfricaNo public processGave £620k

Five years of accounts

Financial year	Income	Expenditure	Grants paid	Accounts document
year to 31 December 2021	£15,022,663	£8,190,430	£774,494	Accounts for year to 31 December 2021
year to 31 December 2022	£18,035,034	£12,338,904	£147,680	Accounts for year to 31 December 2022
year to 31 December 2023	£20,710,984	£14,698,535	—	Accounts for year to 31 December 2023
year to 31 December 2024	£40,791,301	£15,831,510	£23,330	Accounts for year to 31 December 2024
year to 31 December 2025	£547,802	£16,515,306	$144,361	Accounts for year to 31 December 2025

Income vs grants paid

IncomeGrants paid

Total value each financial year

YE 2021

£774k grants

YE 2022

£148k grants

YE 2024

£23,330 grants

Grants paid stayed within income across the 3 years shown.

Year to 31 December 2025 not shown: grants paid were reported in US dollars and income in pounds.

Grants paid, year to 31 December 2021; year to 31 December 2022; year to 31 December 2024: grants to institutions, as reported on the charity register (Part B).
Grants paid, year to 31 December 2025: the accounts do not say whether this is grants awarded or paid.

— No grants figure for that year.

Figures from the charity’s filed accounts and its register entry. The document icon links to the charity’s entry on the Charity Commission register, where its filed accounts can be found.