The American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP) posts its list of the top-rated charities currently offering aid services to the survivors of the 2005 Pakistan earthquake. The earthquake registered as high as 7.6 on the Richter scale in some areas and some reports place the death toll as high as 80,000 people. Approximately 60,000 people were injured and as many as 2.5 million have been in need of food and shelter in Afghanistan, northern Pakistan and India. Parts of Pakistani-controlled Kashmir were hit the hardest but there are reports of massive destruction in the northern mountainous areas of Pakistan.

AIP, a leading charity watchdog that issues letter grade (A+ to F) ratings of nonprofit groups, identifies the following relief charities, which are providing aid to the victims. These charities have received an “A” or “B” grade based on the portion of their budget going to program services and their fundraising efficiency.

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· Action Against Hunger - USA (A+)
  1-877-777-1420

· American Refugee Committee (A)
  1-612-872-7060

· Church World Service (A)
  1-800-297-1516

· Direct Relief International (A)
  1-800-676-1638

· Doctors Without Borders - USA (A)
  1-888-392-0392

· International Medical Corps (A+)
  1-800-481-4462

· International Rescue Committee (A)
  1-877-733-8433

· Lutheran World Relief (A)
  1-800-597-5972

· Oxfam-America (A-)
  1-800-776-9326

· Plan USA (A-)
  1-800-556-7918

· Save the Children (A)
  1-800-728-3843

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These charities perform favorably in relation to AIP’s benchmarks:

1) A charity should spend at least 60% of its budget on program services.
2) Charities should spend no more than $35 to raise $100.

Contact your favorite charities to find out if they provide the specific types of aid that you would like to fund, e.g., emergency relief, health care, infrastructure development, education, etc.

DONORS BEWARE
Americans wanting to help survivors of the Pakistan earthquake should send contributions to only those charities with an established track record of helping people in this region.

Tips for Making the Most of Your Donation:

· Give to newly created charities only if you have reliable third-party verification of their credibility and/or have knowledge of and trust the officers and directors of the new group.

· Do not assume that a claimed celebrity endorsement is real or that the celebrity has adequately scrutinized the charity.

· Give with check or credit card instead of cash. There is little assurance that coin or currency donations will actually go to the intended beneficiary.

· Be cautious about giving to individual disaster victims that show up on covers of magazines or on television. Unpublicized victims may be more in need than publicized victims who are often flooded with gifts.

· Be cautious about giving in response to a telemarketing call. If you decide to donate, make sure you have reviewed all the information from the charity and ask what percentage of your contribution will fund the pertinent programs. For more tips on giving click here.

SEND A CHECK, NOT GOODS
The best way to help is by sending a check. Cash donations enable charities to buy the most needed types of food, medicine, clothing, shelter materials and other supplies. By buying relief products locally or regionally, charities can reduce shipping costs and more rapidly deliver assistance. Before sending any goods, first contact the charity to find out if they are appropriate and if it will be cost effective to distribute them. For example, after the tsunami in southeast Asia, boxes of donated winter coats, scarves and fuzzy hats, completely useless items in tsunami stricken nations with tropical climates, were sent to these nations.