The Rafiki Foundation was established in 1985 by Rosemary Jensen and others who desired to help Africans. "Rafiki" means friend in Swahili and depicts the purpose of the foundation -- to befriend orphans and widows in their distress (James 1:27).

Rafiki’s mission is to help Africans in ten countries know God through caring and educating orphans, providing other selected groups with Bible-based materials and training in childcare, education, and Bible study, and giving economic opportunities to widows and impoverished women.