Is Haitian Fundraising Helpful or a Rip-off?

by Gary Snyder

Nonprofit Imperative has been monitoring the finances of the relief efforts in Haiti. In the last issue of NI it was noted that roughly 38% of the more than $1.4 billion donated to relief agencies and others was spent. Some charities attribute the slow expenditures to a lack of leadership from the Haitian government and the international community. Give Well (givewell.org) has done an admirably analysis and has a grade card on major disaster relief organizations based on their transparency and accountability to donors. The series of articles provides a framework for the donor to make decisions as to which agency to contribute. You may be surprised as to the results. The study’s admonition is worthy of consideration since it is general overview and not an assessment as to the quality of any organization.