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Gambiarising

EIN 27-6775063 · Emeryville, CA

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

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthFair69 out of 100GovernanceStrong91 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

GambiaRising's primary program is to support the education of those who without help will not be able to attend school, with a special emphasis on girls. Where lack of schools or school infrastructure is the primary obstacle to students getting an education, we have occasionally supported campaigns to fund rural school construction, the building of teachers' housing, school toilets and/or school kitchens and gardens. We also provide fiscal sponsorship and advisory support to three Gambian non-profits, Working Water Gambia, Forest Gardens Gambia, and West Africa Medicine and Education.

Income
$583,512
Spending
$620,420
Spent on programs
99%
Reserves
4.3 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 99%
Employees
0
Volunteers
12

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

Fair: 69 out of 100. Higher than 36% of charities in its peer group (international, $250k to $1m).

  • Reserves

    20 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 4.3 months of spending.

  • Debt

    20 of 20

    It owes 0% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    4 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 6% of income.

  • Income trend

    10 of 15

    Income fell 6% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    99% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 1 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: 91 out of 100. Higher than 79% of charities in its peer group (international, $250k to $1m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    10 of 12 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.

  • Independent check of accounts

    6 of 15

    Its accounts were not audited or reviewed 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 (4)
  1. $490,453 spent. GambiaRising's primary program is to support the education of those who without help will not be able to attend school, with a special emphasis on girls. In the school year beginning in September 2024, more than 6,100 students were in school with scholarship support consisting of whatever was needed to have them start, continue, or go back to school. This included school uniforms, books & supplies, tuition, study fees as needed and occasionally bicycles, car fare, lunch money, medicine, shoes, etc. as well. Some university and college students were also provided laptops and even plane tickets and visa fees for those able to win full scholarships to study in the U.S. for graduate degrees. Of all these students, 73% were girls.
  2. $25,181 spent. In rural areas where the primary cause of the lack of qualified teachers is the absence of appropriate rental housing in rural villages, we supported the construction of teachers' housing in rural schools by funding materials and the necessary skilled labor to construct "hand-made" housing blocks near the schools, with bricks made by hand by the community. We have also supported repairs and improvements to rural schools, construction and repair of school kitchens and wells, and for tree planting and garden improvements in rural schools and training for rural school garden masters.
  3. $66,879 spent. GambiaRising provided fiscal and administrative support to Working Water Gambia (with most funds provided by Water Charity but including other small donations) whose work included repairing or replacing wells and pumps in rural Gambian villages. In 2024, pumps and wells were repaired and rehabilitated in 26 Gambian villages and 3 major new solar powered water systems were installed.
  4. $31,428 spent. Working through the Gambian non-profit Forest Gardens Gambia, with funding from Trees for the Future, GambiaRising supported the continuing work of training Central River Region farmers in sustainable agriculture programs, propogating and planting thorny "live fences" around their farms and propogating and incorporating trees of all kinds into their farms. At the end of 2024, 475 farmers in two districts of the Central River Region were actively participating in the program and during 2024, they planted 975,000 thorny bushes and trees - the thorny bushes for live fencing and the trees to incorporate fruit, nut, and timber trees into their farms.

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 October 13, 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 November 6, 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 October 13, 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 October 13, 2026.

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

    Recognized by the IRS since March 2011.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 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 November 4, 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.