ActionAid USA

CharityWatch is unable to provide a complete rating of ActionAid USA or of its parent organization, ActionAid International, due to how the aggregated organization is structured.

ActionAid USA is the United States affiliate of ActionAid International (AAI), an international non-profit antipoverty agency comprised of a federation of Affiliate and Associate Members working in more than 40 countries. AAI's headquarters is located in Johannesburg, South Africa, and the organization's aggregated financial statements (which include the financial activities of the headquarters and its Affiliates and Associates) are presented in Euros and are based on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). For this reason, AAI's financial statements are not comparable to those of U.S. based organizations whose financial statements are based on U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and presented in U.S. Dollars. Therefore, CharityWatch is unable to provide a rating of ActionAid International.

ActionAid USA essentially functions as a fundraising arm for ActionAid International (AAI). According to the ActionAid USA audit of December 31, 2021 (Note 8, Affiliation with ActionAid International):

"ActionAid USA has an affiliation agreement with ActionAid International (AAI), a Johannesburg-based organization. Under the terms of the agreement, ActionAid USA has the exclusive right to use AAI's name in the United States through February 2028. ActionAid USA is responsible for all fundraising within the United States for international development projects in the countries where the partner affiliates work..."
 

During the year ended December 31, 2021, ActionAid USA made grant awards to AAI of $2,498,276 to support "international development projects in the countries where the partner affiliates work," according to ActionAid USA's 2021 audit (Note 8, Affiliation with ActionAid International). The $2,498,276 in grant awards to AAI represents about 87% of ActionAid USA's total grants and subgrants made in 2021 and 60% of its total spending on program services.

ActionAid USA's 2021 tax filing (IRS Form 990) reports that approximately $4.14 million, or about 83%, of its $4.96 million budget was spent on programs in 2021. Approximately $2.50 million, or about 60%, of that program spending consisted of the grant awards to ActionAid International (described above).

Because ActionAid USA functions as a fundraising arm of ActionAid International, CharityWatch is unable to provide a Program % for ActionAid USA. However, CharityWatch is able to provide a Cost to Raise $100 fundraising ratio:

ActionAid USA spent a very reasonable $7 to raise each $100 in public support in 2021.

CharityWatch's methodology is not designed to measure how efficiently a charity grants funds to one of its related or affiliated organizations. For this reason, CharityWatch does not believe it is fair to publish a Program % for ActionAid USA alongside those of other charities that conduct their own programs and/or primarily make grants to other, independent charities.

CharityWatch's inability to provide a complete rating of ActionAid USA is strictly due to how the organization is structured, and not due to an unwillingness to provide information or answer our questions.

In order for CharityWatch to be able to rate ActionAid International in the future, we would require consolidated or combined audited financial statements, expressed in U.S. Dollars and based on U.S. GAAP, that include all of ActionAid International's related entities. Such statements would eliminate inter-organizational transactions, as well as provide a comprehensive view of how the organization both raises and spends public dollars on the whole. This information may not currently be practicable for ActionAid International to provide given that its national headquarters is based in South Africa, and its financial statements are based on IFRS and expressed in Euros.

ActionAid USA reports that its top three contributors in 2021 made contributions in the individual amounts of $2,000,000; $1,200,000; and $730,000 (IRS Form 990, Schedule B, Schedule of Contributors). The $3,930,000 in combined contributions from those three contributors represents approximately 63% of ActionAid USA's reported total contributions and grants received in 2021.

ActionAid USA reports $248,183 for "Forgiveness of note payable," according to the ActionAid USA audited Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended December 31, 2021. The $248,183 matches the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) "Loan Amount" approved for ActionAid USA on May 1, 2020 and forgiven as of May 25, 2021, according to the ProPublica "Tracking PPP" online database.

[The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was established as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) to provide loans to qualifying businesses and nonprofit organizations. PPP borrowers could qualify to have the loans forgiven if the proceeds were used for payroll and certain eligible costs.]