Prince Harry’s African charity is being officially investigated over “concerns raised” about potential racism and bullying, a UK government watchdog announced Thursday.
Sentebale, a foundation set up by the Duke of Sussex in 2006, is being investigated by the Charity Commission over alarming allegations raised by Sentebale chairwoman Dr Sophie Chandauka.
“The regulator for charities in England and Wales has opened a regulatory compliance case to examine concerns raised about the charity Sentebale,” the Charity Commission said in a statement on Thursday.
“The Charity Commission is now in direct contact with parties who have raised concerns to gather evidence and assess the compliance of the charity and trustees past and present with their legal duties.”
It comes after the charity — which was set up to help AIDs patients in Africa — was embroiled in a vicious dispute between Prince Harry and other leading trustees, and Chandauka, who became leader of the organization in 2023.
Last week, the Duke along with all of the other trustees on the charity board, resigned in what was seen as a statement on Chandauka’s leadership.
For her part, she accused “toxic” Prince Harry of “harassment and bullying,” in an interview on Sky News last weekend.
Previously, Chandauka accused the Sentebale board of “bullying, harassment, misogyny [and] misogynoir,” when she first raised her complaint with the watchdog.
Prince Harry and fellow charity co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho said last month that their relationship with Chandauka was broken “beyond repair, creating an untenable situation.”
The Charity Commission will now look to “determine whether the charity’s current and former trustees, including its chair, have fulfilled their responsibilities under charity law,” the statement went on.
“After a period of assessing the initial concerns raised with the Commission, the regulator informed the charity on April 2, 2025, it has opened a regulatory compliance case. The regulator has not made any findings at this time,” the statement concluded.
Chandauka — who first raised concerns in February — welcomed the investigation, and revealed that Sentebale had launched an internal review last year and would soon present its findings.
“We hope that, together, these actions will give the general public, our colleagues, partners, supporters, donors and the communities we serve comfort that Sentebale and its new board of trustees are acting appropriately to demonstrate and ensure good governance and a healthy culture for Sentebale to thrive,” she said in a statement.
