Bridges to Burkina Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
821916042
IRS 990 coverage
2025–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2024, Form 990-N 2021
Location
Wildwood, PA, USA
Phone
4123672709
Rating
57
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
International Relief

Reported finances

Revenue
$230,170
Expenses
$103,338
Assets
$428,540
Liabilities
$3,715

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ROBERT SMOUSE (ACTING PRESIDENT/VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • MICHELINE OUEDRAOGO (FOUNDER/DIRECTOR)
  • ROBERT SMOUSE (ACTING PRESIDENT/VICE PRESIDENT)
  • CRAIG LINNER (DIRECTOR)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The organization operates exclusively for the relief of poverty and the provision of advancement of education through religion in burkina faso, west africa. The organization aims to support, in particular, the means and construction of buildings for education in burkina faso, west africa for underprivileged children and orphans without distinction of religion, nationality, and public opinion apart from any consideration of race, gender, belief and political opinion, through the construction of schools and a craft learning center such as sewing, carpentry, farming and a medical center for the minimum care of students and is open to the public at their expense.

What it reported doing in 2025

Living above the dirt - this program is designed to help families obtain concrete flooring in their homes for better health and to help build their self-esteem. The parasitic insect, name "bouglee" in the native language, lives in the dirt and feeds on live flesh. Sleeping on the dirt floor of their mud brick homes, the people are regularly subjected to the insects boring into their skin, causing both pain and infection and requiring frequent trips to the hospital. The organization provides cement and the village people provide the sand and gravel needed to create a strong concrete mix. They also provide all the labor for mixing and pouring the concrete.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 94% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

MIXED - Most voting board members are independent and revenue comfortably covers expenses. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 50
  • Transparency & Controls: 55
  • Accountability: 70
  • Sustainability: 78
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 31.6%; rating input score 32
  • Program expense ratio: 67.5%; rating input score 68
  • Fundraising efficiency: $193.82 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Fail
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 55.1%; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.15; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: 16.5% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 20.7% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 31.6% of revenue deployed · 67.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 6 board members independent · 2 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $70K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 6 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and foreign activity
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 32/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 40/100.