Wuqu Kawoq Sa
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
Wuqu' Kawoq is a non-governmental organization that unites language, culture, and science to transform the health of Maya people in the indigenous highlands of Guatemala. Programs include primary and complex medical care.
- Income
- $4.8 million
- Spending
- $4.3 million
- Spent on programs
- 90%
- Reserves
- 2.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 71%
- Employees
- 3
- Volunteers
- 65
- Highest pay
- $120,000, director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 75 out of 100. Higher than 52% of charities in its peer group (human services, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 2.6 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 6% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 11% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 40% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1590% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 5 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 65% of charities in its peer group (human services, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2512 of 12 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, 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 (4)
- $1.6 million spent. Research: In order to provide health interventions with the highest impact and that create long lasting behavior change towards better health, we empirically investigate chronic disease in Guatemala and the effects of our program interventions. The data serves as a guide for us to start new programs, scale up existing programs, or seek to find a new solution to an old program. The center for indigenous health research, founded by Wuqu Kawoq, is a leader in global health research. In 2025 we published 12 research papers in areas including prenatal care, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, covid vaccines, and cervical cancer. A complete listing of our publications since our founding is located on our website. Through the end of 2025 we have over 130 peer-reviewed publications covering a range of topics including chronic malnutrition, food security, non-communicable diseases, development and gender equity in health, early child development, family planning, midwifery, and emergency obstetrics and medical anthropology.
- $1.4 million spent. Women's Health: We define women's health in the broadest sense possible. In addition to high-quality cervical cancer screening and prenatal care, we also offer management of sexually transmitted infections, family planning services, and treatment of all cancers that commonly affect women. We know women have diverse medical needs, so our program also includes the provision of robust primary care. We have developed specific expertise in the screening, diagnosis, referral, and treatment of cervical cancer, which is the leading cause of death in Guatemala. Our obstetrics initiatives focus on reduction of maternal mortality through high-quality prenatal care, midwife education, and the use of technology to make childbirth safer. The foundation of our women's health program is providing classes in Mayan languages that, when integrated with our nutrition initiatives, help women have healthier pregnancies, children, and lives. At the end of 2025 we served 11,614 women.
- $688,750 spent. Other Program Services: Our other program services include primary care provided at the home and community level that are defined in our partnerships with indigenous communities to identify health needs that are important to them. These include early childhood disease with an emphasis on early childhood development and development of interventions using published standards from the World Health Organization and UNICEF. Chronic disease care integrating clinical care, health education, and linguistic and cultural sensitivity to address diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, kidney failure, epilepsy, and rheumatoid arthritis and care navigation using an innovative system to get each patient the health care they need and deserve to allow them to live with complex illnesses in rural Guatemala.
- $273,848 spent. General Nutrition: Our nutrition program provides universal and micro-nutrient supplementation to all children from 6 months to two years of age, and to all pregnant or lactating women in the communities that we serve. We focus on educating child caregivers about breastfeeding, complementary foods, common childhood illnesses, hygiene, and clean water through our community-based education programs and classes. In 2025, we provided in-home nutrition monitoring and assistance to 554 patients through 11,112 home visits.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
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 October 13, 2026.
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 October 13, 2026.
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 October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since August 2007.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
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 21, 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.