CMW International Conference
CMW International Conference

A global association of charity monitors

Upholding our members to the highest regulatory standards.

Our Mission​

Our mission at Charity Monitoring Worldwide is to advance transparency and accountability in the charitable sector, promoting trust within society towards charities making a positive impact.

We are dedicated to ensuring satisfactory organization and execution of fundraising for charitable purposes, while upholding the highest standards of governance and maintaining adequate administration of collected funds.

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Our Objectives

Supporting Transparency

To support its members in promoting charities’ transparency and integrity

Monitoring Effectively

To contribute to the expertise and professionalism of organizations monitoring charities in countries around the world

Encouraging Accountability

To formulate common standards for charities and for organizations monitoring charities

Collaborating Globally

To gather information, knowledge and experience from members and other sources so that it can be exchanged among members

Maintaining Transparency

To provide donors, companies, foundations, governments, media, etc. information about charity monitoring systems

United Voice

To represent the interests of the Association within cross-border bodies, such as the European Union, among others

Expanding Worldwide

To promote the creation of charity monitoring in countries where such an activity is not yet occurring.

Our History

Charity Monitoring Worldwide (CMW), formally known as the International Committee of Fundraising Organizations (ICFO), has stood as a beacon of integrity within global philanthropy since its inception in 1958. Founded on the principles of accountability and transparency, CMW arose from the collective vision of national charity monitoring bodies that recognized the acute need for an international standard in the assessment of charitable operations.

Registered in The Netherlands, the association began as a collaborative effort to ensure that donations reached their intended purposes and that charitable organizations operated with the highest levels of accountability.

Over the decades, CMW has grown into a worldwide network with presence in four continents, with members who share the vision of instilling public trust in charitable entities.
The association’s history is marked by its pursuit of excellence in monitoring and its evolution in line with the expanding dynamics of charity work.

CMW contributes to the strengthening of each of its members through the exchange of experiences, facilitating the incorporation of trends and new developments in the third sector into the analysis and evaluation processes of each of the members. Working together, CMW members contribute to the excellence of nonprofit organizations worldwide.

Ensuring Accountability and Impact

Our members are standards-based charity evaluators. Each of them is an independent organization that monitors charities within its country, according to their own set of standards. These standards vary from country to country according to the development and characteristics of the non for profit sector, taking into account the legal requirements in place.

Each member analyzes how charities function, how they manage their finances, and how effectively they achieve their stated missions. Through in-depth reviews, and reports, each member provides donors with crucial information, ensuring their contributions reach genuine causes and make real impacts. This vital oversight builds public trust, encourages ethical practices within the charitable sector, and plays a pivotal role in fostering a culture of giving that is both wise and informed.

We are dedicated to promoting transparency and integrity in the charitable sector. By doing so, we enhance the donor´s trust in the charitable organizations. We provide donors (individuals, foundations, companies, public institutions, government agencies, etc.) with objective, updated and rigorous information.

Looking for trustworthy charities?

Check out our members’ websites to find the charities that have gone through a rigorous assessment and comply with international standards.

Our Guiding Principles

CMW Principles guide CMW members in setting charity standards, assessing whether charities meet these standards, and sharing the results.

The Principles cover a range of crucial topics aimed at promoting transparency and confidence in charities. CMW aims to determine the trustworthiness of charities in a fair and credible manner.

To give donors confidence that their contributions are used for the purpose for which they were given and that a monitored charity is trustworthy, charity standards should require that:

  1. Public Benefit: The charity’s activities are consistent with their mission and are dedicated to serving the public’s benefit.
  2. Governance: The charity has an active and independent governance body, along with equally independent effective oversight procedures.
  3. Finances: Charities regularly provide complete and accurate financial information. Financial statements should provide a true and fair view of the charity’s financial position and operations.
  4. Efficiency: Charities transparently report fundraising and overhead expenses.
  5. Effectiveness: Charities promote effectiveness evaluations or regularly assess their results, performance, and/or effectiveness. 
  6. Integrity: Requiring that charities act with integrity, that their fundraising and other practices are ethical, and that their communication is truthful, accurate and neither misleading nor aggressive.
  7. Transparency: Charities provide comprehensive, useful, and easily accessible information including background, finances, activities, and results.

 

To ensure that standards are broadly accepted, attainable for charities, and enforceable by monitoring organizations, CMW members should:

  1. Involve Multiple Stakeholders: Development charity standards using a multi-stakeholder approach.
  2. Document Standards: Clearly document standards for consistent application and understanding.
  3. Approve Standards: Approve and publish their own standards.
  4. Regular Revision: Periodically review the standards for charities based on experiences and, if necessary, adjust them using a multi-stakeholder approach.

 

CMW Guidelines for Evaluating Charities

To ensure fair charity review, CMW members should:

  1. Assess charities against a set of standards that signal charity trust.
  2. Have a structured evaluation process, which is similar for similar charities.
  3. Use current information about the charity.
  4. Have assessments performed by qualified evaluators, who have no affiliations to the monitored charity.
  5. Ensure evaluators are employees, volunteers, or work directly on behalf of the monitoring organization.
  6. Apply the same assessment criteria in comparable circumstances.
  7. Keep comprehensive records of the evaluation and its outcomes.
  8. Conducts quality assurance checks on the evaluation and its findings.
  9. Provide charities with the opportunity to submit additional information when a standard is not met in full.
  10. Ensure the final decision regarding whether the standards have been met is based on the results of the assessment and is made by the monitoring organization or a body established by it. Only individuals with no ties to the charity shall have voting rights. An appeal process must be in place and disclosed to the assessed charities.
  11. Reassess a monitored charity’s compliance with the standards on a regular basis, with a suggested interval of every two years for re-evaluation.
  12. While the monitoring organization may charge a fee to the charity, it must ensure that there is no conflict of interest that limits the objective assessment of the charities.
  13. Regulate the reconsideration of its final decisions.
  14. Review its assessment process and regulations periodically.

 

In sharing the results of charity assessments, CMW members should:

  1. Publicly share the charity standards, providing donors with a clear understanding of what the organization monitors look for.
  2. Disclose the evaluation process and any fees that apply, so donors are well informed about the assessment process and the nature of the relationship between the monitoring entity and the charity.
  3. Publish the results of their assessment, allowing donors to easily recognize charities that have successfully been assessed to meet the standards (for instance, using certification seals, detailed reports, or a list of compliant organizations).
  4. Monitoring organizations inform charities before the assessment of how the results will be published.
  5. If a charity has gone through a complete assessment and does not meet one or more of the standards and the report will be published, then the charity should be given the opportunity to comment on the findings of the report.
  6. Not publish rankings of ratings to compare charities.

 

Members of the Board

Ana Benavides - CMW - President

Ana Benavides

PRESIDENT

Fundación Lealtad Madrid, Spain

Harmienke Kloeze

Vice-President

Centraal Bureau Fondsenwerving CBF Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Javier García

Secretary General

Confío Chihuahua, Mexico

Curtis Towns

Treasurer

CCCC Elmira, Canada

Elvia Castro

Board Member

BBB / Wise Giving Alliance Arlington, USA

by-laws

Constitution Act (2011)

By-laws (2024)

Annual Reports & Financial statements

Annual Accounts