Looking for your donation to save or improve the most lives per dollar? GiveWell is a non-profit research organization that focuses on just that.
GiveWell does not focus solely on the financials, they also do deep research to analyze non-profits addressing global poverty and what type of impact their programs are actually making.
Many Daffy members have told us that they use GiveWell as a resource when picking where to make a donation, so we wanted to share their suggestions of top charities for 2022.
How does GiveWell determine the most effective charities?
GiveWell analyzes other non-profits to help donors identify those that make the biggest impact on global poverty while also being cost-effective. GiveWell opts to focus on organizations working in global health and poverty because their research shows those are two areas where money can make the biggest difference.
Within those two program areas, they use four elements to evaluate charities:
- Evidence of effectiveness using independent studies of charity programs.
- Cost-effectiveness using in-depth models to evaluate and monitor each organization’s budget and spending.
- Transparency by asking charities for data and performing staff interviews and on-site visits.
- Room for more funding by looking at past funding and forecasting future spending capabilities.
It’s also important to note GiveWell’s priority programs: malaria prevention, parasite treatment in children, and direct cash transfers. These areas have been shown to provide the most help in improving outcomes for the global poor.
GiveWell’s Top 9 Charities in 2022
Here are GiveWell’s top recommendations for its three priority programs.
Malaria Consortium
The Malaria Consortium works in both Africa and Asia to prevent illness and death from malaria. The organization distributes anti-malarial drugs to kids up to five years old since this age group is the most likely to die from this disease.
To make the maximum impact, the distribution of these preventative drugs occurs during the highest transmission season. Doses are given on a monthly basis, with 56% of program participants receiving all four months of treatments. GiveWell estimates that the average cost for the four-month dosage program is $6.59 per child. Receiving more funds could help the Malaria Consortium scale its efforts to reach more children to prevent malaria transmission.
Donate $26 to the Malaria Consortium & provide malaria prevention treatment to a child for a year.
Against Malaria Foundation
GiveWell places a major focus on malaria because it causes over 400,000 deaths per year. The Against Malaria Foundation takes a different approach from the Malaria Consortium by distributing nets for protection. The organization uses a specialized product called long-lasting insecticide-treated nets, or LLINs for short. Evidence shows that they do reduce child mortality rates due to malaria.
Donate to the Against Malaria Foundation; just $5 provides one net in sub-Saharan Africa.
Helen Keller International
Vitamin A deficiencies lead to more than 200,000 child deaths annually. Hellen Keller International’s programs focus on decreasing malnutrition, particularly through vitamin A supplementation. This also reduces the risk of blindness among children. GiveWell’s analysis of the organization’s impact reveals that Helen Keller International plays a pivotal and necessary role in successfully distributing vitamin A supplements in over 20 countries (including the U.S.). Add Impact of a donation
Donate to Helen Keller International, which delivers its Vitamin A supplements for just $1 per child.
New Incentives
New Incentives works to reduce preventable diseases by providing vaccines to children in Nigeria, which has one of the highest child mortality rates in the world. The organization uses cash transfers to fund vaccines. After government assistance, the estimated cost to vaccinate one child is $38. New Incentives also works to prevent vaccine stockouts.
Donate $38 to New Incentives to help vaccinate a child.
SCI Foundation
Parasitic worms affect hundreds of millions of people across the world. The SCI Foundation partners with sub-Saharan African governments to build and scale programs that treat schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis — also known as deworming. The programs typically focus on children and GiveWell estimates that there’s a high degree of success with a low cost of treatment. In fact, the total cost per child for deworming is just $1.03 and can lead to improved life outcomes.
Donate to the SCI Foundation and make a major difference in the number of children treated for parasitic worms.
Evidence Action
Another organization focusing on deworming, Evidence Action supports government-run programs in schools. Its Deworm the World program has monitors visit schools to determine whether children have actually been helped within these programs.
GiveWell’s research shows that Evidence Action implements a strong process for their partnership efforts. They work both at the advocacy level and also on the ground.
Donate to Evidence Action to serve children in India, Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Pakistan.
Sightsavers
The mission at Sightsavers is to prevent avoidable blindness caused by neglected tropical diseases. GiveWell focused on the effectiveness of its deworming program for children, which is cost-effective at just $0.92 per child. Sightsavers performs both school-based and community-based drug administrations since some areas have low school enrollment.
Donate to Sightsavers; it takes less than a dollar to get deworming medication to one child.
The END Fund
The final deworming nonprofit recommended by GiveWell, the END Fund provides technical assistance and creates programs to decrease neglected tropical diseases (including schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis that require deworming). Deworming treatments administered by the END Fund are estimated to cost just $0.82 each.
Donate to the END Fund and focus your dollars in Africa, where 40% of the global neglected tropical disease burden is concentrated.
GiveDirectly
GiveDirectly helps to combat extreme poverty by making direct cash transfers to families in need, primarily in Africa. For every $100 donated, participants receive $83. They typically spend the money on business and agriculture investments (such as land to cultivate and dairy cows), better housing, and school fees for their children. Just $30 a month lifts one person out of extreme poverty. GiveWell estimates that the organization could substantially benefit from more donations, particularly since funds have a direct impact on local economies.
Donate to GiveDirectly and get cash directly into the hands of those who need it most.
GiveWell
If you love what GiveWell is doing, you can also donate directly to them too. They use the funds to implement in-depth research programs to evaluate and recommend charities working on global health and poverty.
All of these non-profits have been thoroughly vetted by GiveWell and are a great starting point in your research prior to making a donation. You can also look at each organization’s mission, specific programming, revenue/expenses, and why others give on their Daffy profile.
Ready to make giving a habit? Get started with Daffy.