Tearfund Canada is a 5-star charity that is financially transparent. Its results reporting grade is an A, which is above average. Tearfund Canada has overhead spending of 31%, which is within Ci’s reasonable range. Ci has found Tearfund Canada to have Good demonstrated impact per dollar donated, meaning the charity has above-average impact.

Founded in 1982, Tearfund Canada (TFC), formerly called World Relief Canada, is a Christian charity that works to end poverty across the globe. Tearfund Canada uses a model of church-based community transformation where it delivers aid and training to people through partnerships with local churches. Tearfund Canada is a member of Canadian Foodgrains Bank (CFGB) which is a partnership of 15 Canadian church agencies working together to end global hunger. The charity states that almost 690 million people in the world are hungry and malnourished, and nearly 98% of these people live in developing countries. Tearfund Canada’s charitable programs are Relief and Rehabilitation, Development, and Education. In F2023, the charity spent $8m on its programs.

A Charity Intelligence 2023 Top 100 Rated Charity

In F2023, TFC spent 59% of program spending on Relief and Rehabilitation. This program involves delivering emergency aid to people in disaster zones and working with local churches to stop gender-based violence. Emergency aid includes food, water, shelter, sanitation, and medical care. In F2023, TFC saved 37,023 lives through emergency relief, and distributed 1,069 metric tons of food. The charity trained 364 church and community leaders in Sexual on Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) rehabilitation.

Tearfund Canada spent 39% of its program spending on Development in F2023. The Development program includes agricultural training, Village Savings Groups, and environmental work. Village Savings Groups are groups of 25 to 30 people who create a pooled savings account that can be used to start a business, send children to school, and meet basic needs without relying on exploitative loan sharks. Groups meet weekly and receive training on bookkeeping and business principles. In F2023, TFC planted 367,817 trees, and trained 18,150 farmers in conservation agriculture. Additionally, 781 new savings groups were formed, totalling 18,744 individuals enrolled in savings groups.

The Education program was 2% of program spending in F2023. This includes educating Canadians about issues of poverty, climate adaptation, humanitarian aid, and development.

Tearfund Canada had donations of $3.3m in F2023.

The charity received $5.9m in government funding representing 64% of total revenues.

Administrative costs are 5% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 26% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 31%, which is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.

Tearfund Canada has $2.2m in reserve funds. These reserve funds are the charity’s cash and investments. TFC has 3 months of program costs covered by its current reserves.

This charity report is an update that has been sent to Tearfund Canada for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on June 6, 2024, by Lily Ferguson.