GiveDirectly does not meet the following 3 Standards for Charity Accountability:
Standard 6 (Board Policy on Effectiveness)
Have a board policy of assessing, no less than every two years, the organization's performance and effectiveness and of determining future actions required to achieve its mission.
GiveDirectly does not meet this Standard because:
- The organization does not have a written, board approved policy which states that an organizational effectiveness assessment will take place at least once every two years.
Standard 7 (Board Approval of Written Report on Effectiveness)
Submit to the organization's governing body, for its approval, a written report that outlines the results of the aforementioned performance and effectiveness assessment and recommendations for future actions.
GiveDirectly does not meet this Standard because:
- The organization has not conducted an effectiveness assessment within the past two years.
Standard 14 (Budget)
Have a board-approved annual budget for its current fiscal year, outlining projected expenses for major program activities, fund raising, and administration.
GiveDirectly does not meet this Standard because:
- The organization did not produce a budget for 2022.
GiveDirectly meets the remaining 17 Standards for Charity Accountability.
GiveDirectly offers a service that enables others to send cash transfers directly to people in need. The organization operates in the United States, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Liberia, Malawi, Togo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Morocco. GiveDirectly identifies households and informs them they are eligible for a transfer, helps them register for a digital payments system, sends funds, and follows up with recipients post-transfer. The organization reports that many of its transfers are made as part of research projects designed to better understand how to optimize the use of cash transfers and answer questions posed by the policy world. In 2020, GiveDirectly launched a cash response to COVID. In the United States, the organization partnered with an app that helps the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and state-assisted recipients manage their benefits. In Africa, GiveDirectly developed cash transfer programs to help address challenges such as job loss, severe sickness/mortality, and increases in poverty.
For the year ended December 30, 2020, GiveDirectly's program expenses were:
| U.S. COVID assistance |
$147,076,832 |
| International poverty assistance |
$76,202,296 |
| Total Program Expenses: |
$223,279,128 |
*2020 compensation includes annual salary and, if applicable, benefit plans, expense accounts, and other allowances.
Note: The highest compensated employee was Pilali Mukhopadhyay, Chief Operating Officer, who received $330,848 in compensation.
Method(s) Used:
Grant proposals, Internet, Invitations to fund raising events, Planned giving arrangements, Radio, Cause- related marketing (affinity credit cards, consumer product sales, etc.)
Fundraising costs were 1% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $303,505,200, are donations received as a result of fundraising activities.)
This organization is tax-exempt under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.It is eligible to receive contributions deductible as charitable donations for federal income tax purposes.
The following information is based on GiveDirectly's audited financial statements for the year ended December 30, 2020.
| Source of Funds |
| Foundation contributions |
$121,637,598 |
| Stock donations |
$86,319,101 |
| General contributions |
$75,264,298 |
| Corporate contributions |
$10,414,979 |
| Federal grants |
$4,992,322 |
| Government/multilateral |
$4,520,322 |
| Investment income |
$1,664,937 |
| Foreign currency transactions |
$903,518 |
| Other income |
$423,118 |
| Contributed goods and services |
$349,331 |
| Federated campaigns |
$7,249 |
| Total Income |
$306,496,773 |
- Programs: 98%
- Fundraising: Less than 1%
- Administrative: Less than 1%
| Total Income |
$306,496,773 |
| Program expenses |
$223,279,128 |
| Fundraising expenses |
$3,554,962 |
| Administrative expenses |
$2,600,321 |
| Other expenses |
$0 |
| Total expenses: |
$229,434,411 |
| Income in Excess of Expenses |
$77,062,362 |
| Beginning Net Assets |
$65,980,116 |
| Other Changes In Net Assets |
$0 |
| Ending Net Assets |
$143,042,478 |
| Total Liabilities |
$41,253,904 |
| Total Assets |
$184,296,382 |
Note: According to GiveDirectly's 2020 audited financial statements, the organization received in-kind contributions totaling $349,331 in the form of advertising software subscription ($210,458), internet marketing service ($60,000), tech services ($46,080), help desk support software subscription ($24,726), consulting ($7,000), and marketing software subscription ($1,068).