Where do program fees or contributions go?

Child Family Health International (CFHI) is a 16-year-old nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California.  We have partners in Bolivia, Ecuador, India, Mexico, Nicaragua and South Africa, all of whom benefit directly from our program fees and presence in their community.  CFHI’s mission is to build and strengthen sustainable healthcare services for underserved communities worldwide. 

Like most not-for-profit organizations that run international programs, CFHI’s income is largely generated from program fees.  These fees are an essential way for us to run our global health education programs and to support our international partners who host our students – all at the same time.  This does not necessarily mean that the entire fee goes only to the community where you work.  Let us explain…

What it takes to run an international organization like CFHI

There is a significant cost involved in answering your emails and calls, maintaining the website, doing the paperwork you require for your university, ensuring the quality of the programs and managing the finances of a $4 million organization.  In addition, it is important to remember that costs to do basic business functions in the are several times the cost of doing business in the countries you visit.  CFHI has a unique structure that allows our partners autonomy and fiscal stability.  At the same time, we manage a complicated series of programs throughout the world, maintaining accountability and transparency required for organizations working in the current global environment. 

CFHI maintains an incredibly low overhead cost of 4.8% (most funding agencies consider an overhead cost of less than 30% to be good, and less than 15% to be excellent).  You can read more about nonprofit organization standards at www.guidestar.org.

The two diagrams on the next page are an attempt to visually show you how CFHI financially supports itself and how its resources are allocated. You can also read about how CFHI is ranked by an independent charity watchdog, Charity Navigator. All programs are offered “at cost”, meaning that CFHI does not acquire any profit from student fees. The cost our students pay is the cost of the package of services you receive.

CFHI Income & Expenses

SUPPORT & REVENUE Program Fees: 33.3% Contributions & Grants: 7.2% In-Kind Donations: 58.9% Interest & Other: 0.6% EXPENSES Total Programs: 95.2% General & Admin: 3.2% Fundraising: 1.6% This 2007 report is based on an independent financial audit.

What the Program Fee Covers

Over 50% of the program fee goes to compensate the doctors, homestay families and local CFHI representatives for their work providing the CFHI experience. This important "share" in the profits allows these communities to offer more and better healthcare services.  Our contributions are meant to be an additional source of support for communities that have limited financial resources or access to healthcare.  Therefore, participation in a CFHI program does more than simply provide our students with an educational, service-learning experience. The remaining balance of the fee covers the costs that CFHI incurs providing for the organization and administration of the programs, such as to inventory and transport medical supplies, website production/maintenance costs, staffing for the people that answer calls and emails, regular visits by staff to ensure each site is working well for both students and hosting partners and much more.

For more information about what the fee does and does not include, click here.