International Centre for Research in Agroforestry

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
311567778
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Nairobi, VA, KE
Phone
2542072240
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Standard
Sector
Forest Conservation

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$45,412,924
Expenses
$45,514,811
Assets
$46,764,196
Liabilities
$28,227,989

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

22 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ELIANE UBALIJORO (CEO, DIRECTOR GENERAL ICRAF)

Highest reported compensation

  • FERGUS SINCLAIR (PROGRAM LEADER (THRU 9/12/24)): $276,557 total reported compensation
  • KUMAR TUMULURU (DIRECTOR GENERAL CORP. SERVICES): $272,027 total reported compensation
  • VINCENT GITZ (DIRECTOR FTA, DPP & LATIN AMERICA): $251,986 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To generate science based knowledge about the diverse roles that trees play in agricultural landscapes and to use its research to advance policies and practices that benefit the poor and the environment.

What it reported doing in 2024

Climate change, energy and low-carbon development: to avoid catastrophic climate change, society needs to both end its dependence on fossil fuels and pursue low-emission development through sustainable land management, including agroforestry, ecosystem conservation and restoration, and a transition to sustainable economy models.all cifor-icraf research contributes to climate change mitigation and adaptation by helping to keep trees in the ground, increase tree cover, and find the best tree species for local conditions. The 'climate team's' research focuses on forests conservation, on reducing emissions from deforests and forest degradation (redd+), on the sustainable management of forests and wetlands, on developing sustainable bioenergy solutions, and on bioeconomy transitions. Conserving and sustainably managing carbon-dense peatlands and wetlands is one large area of our work. Through all of this, we aim to support our partners in the development of effective, cost-efficient, and equitable climate policies and practices.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 96% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 89% 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

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 73
  • Accountability: 71
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 87.4%; rating input score 87
  • Program expense ratio: 87%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $138.06 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Pass
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Fail
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Pass
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 80%; rating input score 80; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 50%; rating input score 50; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -0.2%; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.03; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.6; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 4%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -3.9% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -4.5% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -4.8% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 87.4% of revenue deployed · 87% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 12 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 7 filed program accomplishments · $39.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $277K · 22 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $3.2M reported
  • Consistency: 32 of 33 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2016 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 19 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 50/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 6 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 30/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 37/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 22/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Foreign grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 59/100.