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Innovations for Poverty Action

EIN 06-1660068 · New York, NY

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthWeak35 out of 100GovernanceStrong100 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

INNOVATIONS FOR POVERTY ACTION DISCOVERS AND PROMOTES EFFECTIVE SOLUTIONS TO GLOBAL POVERTY.

Income
$52.8 million
Spending
$57.9 million
Spent on programs
77%
Reserves
0.6 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 65%
Employees
110
Volunteers
14
Highest pay
$315,407, executive director

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Weak: 35 out of 100. Higher than 7% of charities in its peer group (social science, $10m to $100m).

  • Reserves

    4 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 0.6 months of spending.

  • Debt

    2 of 20

    It owes 86% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    4 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 10% of income.

  • Income trend

    10 of 15

    Income fell 1% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    77% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 3 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 44% of charities in its peer group (social science, $10m to $100m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    14 of 14 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (6)
  1. $9.4 million spent. IPA'S POLICY AND ADVISORY WORK SUPPORTED THE SCALING OF MULTIPLE COST EFFECTIVE PROGRAMS. IN THE PHILIPPINES, IPA PARTNERED WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND YOUTH IMPACT TO SCALE AN INTERNATIONAL COST-EFFECTIVE PHONE TUTORING AND SMS-BASED EDUCATION PROGRAM, PROVEN THROUGH RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS AS AN EFFECTIVE REMEDIAL APPROACH TO STRENGTHEN FOUNDATIONAL NUMERACY.TOGETHER WITH GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY'S GUIDE, IPA SUPPORTED RWANDA'S MINISTRY OF EDUCATION TO EXPAND THE STARS PROGRAM FROM 248 TO 345 SCHOOLS IN 2024. THE STARS PROGRAM IS AN INITIATIVE TO IMPROVE EDUCATION QUALITY IN RWANDA THROUGH PERFORMANCE-BASED COMPENSATION. IT BUILDS ON A PREVIOUS EVALUATION SUPPORTED BY IPA AND GUIDE, WHICH FOUND THAT PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE CONTRACTS IMPROVED TEACHER PERFORMANCE PARTICULARLY IN CLASSROOM PRESENCE AND PEDAGOGY AND ENHANCED STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES, WITH NO NEGATIVE IMPACT ON TEACHER RECRUITMENT.
  2. $6.1 million spent. AS PART OF IPA'S SECTOR PROGRAMS, IPA'S PEACE & RECOVERY PROGRAM (P&R) AIMS TO IMPROVE OUTCOMES FOR CONFLICT- AND CRISIS-AFFECTED POPULATIONS BY BUILDING THE EVIDENCE BASE ON REDUCING VIOLENCE AND FRAGILITY, PROMOTING PEACE, AND PREVENTING, COPING WITH, AND RECOVERING FROM CRISES. IN 2024, IPA LAUNCHED THE CITIZEN SECURITY RESEARCH INITIATIVE (CSRI), FUNDED BY THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE'S BUREAU OF INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT AFFAIRS. CSRI AIMS TO ADVANCE EVIDENCE ON TOPICS CENTRAL TO JUSTICE, CIVILIAN SECURITY, AND CRIME AND VIOLENCE REDUCTION ADDRESSING GAPS IN KNOWLEDGE ABOUT EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES TO STRENGTHEN JUSTICE SYSTEMS AND COMBAT ILLICIT ACTIVITIES.
  3. $6.0 million spent. IPA HAS ALSO CONTINUED TO DIRECTLY RUN RIGOROUS FIELD RESEARCH TO IDENTIFY COST-EFFECTIVE AND SCALABLE PROGRAMS. ONE EXAMPLE RELATES TO CHILDHOOD IMMUNIZATION, ONE OF THE MOST COST-EFFECTIVE WAYS OF REDUCING CHILD MORTALITY, BUT IN SOME CONTEXTS A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF CHILDREN FAIL TO COMPLETE THEIR IMMUNIZATION SCHEDULES. A SIMPLE, LOW-COST INNOVATION A COLORED BRACELET USED TO SIGNAL WHETHER A CHILD HAS INITIATED VACCINATION, PROGRESSED IN THE SCHEDULE, OR COMPLETED ALL FIRST-YEAR VACCINATIONS ON TIME WAS FOUND TO INCREASE TIMELY AND COMPLETE VACCINATION BY 13 PERCENTAGE POINTS. TO BUILD A PATH TO SCALE, IPA AND RESEARCHER ANNE KARING HAVE BEEN WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE GOVERNMENT TO INTEGRATE THE INTERVENTION INTO ROUTINE SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES SUCH AS THE VACCINE SUPPLY CHAIN, AND TEST IT AT SCALE. IPA IS ALSO WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE NATIONAL AND DISTRICT CIVIL SERVICE TO BUILD CAPACITY WITHIN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH TO MANAGE THE INTERVENTION, REFINE TOOLS AND PROTOCOLS, AND CONDUCT IMPLEMENTATION RESEARCH INTO HOW TO MOST COST-EFFECTIVELY DELIVER THE INTERVENTION AT SCALE IN SIERRA LEONE.
  4. $4.7 million spent. DIGITAL FINANCIAL SERVICES HAVE TRANSFORMED HOW PEOPLE SAVE, BORROW, AND MAKE PAYMENTS ESPECIALLY IN LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRIES. BUT RAPID INNOVATION HAS ALSO INTRODUCED NEW RISKS FOR CONSUMERS, INCLUDING HIDDEN FEES, FRAUD, OVER-INDEBTEDNESS, AND LIMITED AVENUES FOR RESOLVING PROBLEMS THAT ARISE. IN 2024, IPA CONTINUED TO BUILD EVIDENCE ON THE EVOLVING NATURE OF FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGIES AND ASSOCIATED RISKS THROUGH OUR CONSUMER PROTECTION RESEARCH INITIATIVE.
  5. $4.1 million spent. IPA'S SOCIAL PROTECTION PROGRAM PARTNERS WITH GOVERNMENTS AND OTHER IMPLEMENTERS WORKING TO MOVE HOUSEHOLDS OUT OF EXTREME POVERTY BY CREATING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE POOR. IPA WORKED WITH THE WORLD BANK'S GENDER INNOVATION LAB ON THE EFFECTIVE SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS TO GAIN ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT (ESTEEM) FRAMEWORK, WHICH CLARIFIES WHICH SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS DRIVE ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT FOR DIFFERENT GROUPS AND PROVIDES FREE MEASUREMENT TOOLS AND RESEARCH INSIGHTS ON SKILLS TRAINING AND WOMEN'S ECONOMIC ACTIVITY. THIS COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH POSITIONS IPA TO BUILD THE NEXT GENERATION OF EVIDENCE USING COMMON MEASUREMENT FRAMEWORKS WHILE GENERATING IMPLEMENTER-FRIENDLY INSIGHTS FOR EFFECTIVE PROGRAM SCALE-UP.
  6. $14.3 million spent. OTHER PROGRAMS.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since September 2003.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.